Found You
by I don't even Snow
Summary: It's been ten years since Elsa had seen her best friend, Anna. They'd promise they would meet again, but sadly no sign of the other had ever appeared. Now though? At the start of a new semester in Aren University, by some twist of fate, they are neighbors. Again. They just don't know it yet. Eventual Elsanna. Non-incest, college AU.
1. Chapter 1: Elsa's day

**_RING RING RING RING_**

 _".. Huh what? Oh, my alarm. Just five more minutes."_ A girl under the covers thought to herself. She snuck her hand out of the covers to search for that darned alarm clock. After maybe her fifth attempt, she finally hit the snooze button. Content, she brought her hand back into the covers and tried to get more sleep.

"Mooooom, don't worry. I'll be fine. Seriously you don't need to.." She suddenly heard someone say, probably a little bit too loud. Which, quite frankly, is odd because it's supposed to be summer at the mome-

Oh wait. It's move-in day today here at Aren University. Realizing she wouldn't be able to get any more sleep (the walls were always too thin for their own good. Not to mention this girl was a light sleeper), she got out of bed and headed straight for the bathroom. When she looked in the mirror, she sighed. Her platinum blonde hair was sticking out in all directions. To her sides, straight up into the air. It honestly looked like one giant fluff ball. With a huff, she began to get ready for the day in the same way she's done all summer: Shower, fix hair, dress up, fix bed, and fix breakfast. This is the same morning routine this girl, Elsa Wolfhart, has done throughout her summer break, which was spent taking summer courses.

While fixing breakfast, she took note of groceries to buy, such as eggs, bacon, bread, and tomato sauce. Now finished cooking, she began to eat, starting by nibbling on some toast. As she eats, her eyes begin to wander around her room, first turning her attention to the Wii U and television set sitting next to the entrance to her bedroom. After that, she looks around her room at the multitude of pictures she has set up everywhere, taken from the various travels she's had to go through around the country as a child. The last picture she turns her attention to is one of a specific moment of her life. Her high school graduation. She had graduated from Corona High in Florida valedictorian of her class three years ago. She fixes her gaze at that picture, one placed into a silver picture frame, with the shape of roses surrounding it. It's a picture of her and her parents sitting down, grinning towards the camera.

For Elsa, this picture was perhaps the most bittersweet picture she owned. This picture was special for one reason, and one reason alone. It was the only picture she had with her parents present in it. All the other pictures were of her and other friends or family members. Never her parents. That's not to say Elsa didn't love her parents. She did love them. That was the problem.

Sometimes, when she looks at that picture, she's reminded of one very specific day during her Freshmen year of college. It was around 8 p.m., and Elsa was doing her homework on her living room table. Suddenly, she heard her phone ring. She stopped what she was doing and grabbed her phone. She looked at the caller I.D. and noticed it was from her Aunt Gerda. When she answered the phone, she could tell something was horribly wrong. She could hear faint sobs in the background, the only sounds that was coming through the phone actually. So Elsa spoke.

"Hello? Aunt Gerda, is there something wrong?"

"H-Hello Elsa? Oh my god. I- I don't know what to say but… it's your mother and father. They... They were caught in an awful traffic accident. I'm so sorry but, your mom and dad have passed away," was what Elsa heard from the other line.

At that moment, Elsa wasn't sure what to say. She had hoped she had heard incorrectly, and asked "I'm sorry. C-can you repeat that?" She could feel the tears stinging her eyes, a knot in her chest growing.

"It's… your parents. They're. They were caught in a traffic accident. I'm so sorry." Gerda cried out.

Just like that, Elsa's world stopped. She somehow managed to stumble to a wall, before her legs gave out on her. She slid down the wall, and after she was sitting, pulled her knees towards her. She quickly said goodbye to her aunt and took the phone away from her ear. She may have heard the voice on the other line say something, probably some form of condolence, but Elsa didn't care at the moment to check. She ended the call and threw her phone away from her. In that moment, she felt the world crash down on her. So many emotions began to swirl inside of her. The sadness at the loss of her parents, a sadness far more intense than she had ever felt before. Anger at whoever it was involved in the traffic accident. Confusion as to where to go next. Frustration at herself, for reasons she doesn't even know. Frustration at fate. And lastly, not so much an emotion but. A need to just. Scream. As loud as she could. So she could release all the emotions that were swirling within her. So that is what she did. All night. Screaming and crying. She really couldn't bring herself to go to class the next day. Or the week really. Luckily, her professors were kind and emailed her everything she needed. They told her to take all the time she needed. Her friends, Olaf and Marshall, helped keep her company. They gave her someone she could talk to, cry on, and search for much needed hugs. She even talked with one of the counselors around school about her parents. As time passed, she was slowly able to piece herself back together, to the point where the pain didn't bother her that much anyway.

Every time she looks at that picture, she is reminded of that painful night. On the other hand, the picture is also a memory her of her parents. If anything, it was the last remaining memento of them she had left. Because of this, she was never able to throw it away.

After that flashback (and breakfast), she turns her attention away from the pictures, and moves to the sink, where she washes the dishes that were used this morning. Afterwards, she makes a list of everything she needed to buy for school: Pencils, notebooks, paper, ink, and, of course the groceries she took note of earlier. She grabs her keys, her purse, and starts walking towards the door out of her apartment. When she walks out of her bedroom, she glances at another frame she had. It was on a desk that was right behind where she ate dinner. Placed in the golden frame was a different picture. A picture of much fonder times. It was a picture of a nine year old girl with platinum blonde hair and an eight year old girl with bright red hair sleeping next to each other on a couch, the younger girl's head nestled in the crook of the older girl, with her hand resting under the older girl's hand. Elsa smiles and suddenly remembers she forgot something. She walks back into her room, and opens one of the drawers of her desk. Inside, is a small white box. Elsa opens this box revealing a necklace. Connected to this necklace is a white and blue snowflake. Well, half a snowflake. She can't believe she almost forgot this. She looks at it with a very soft smile.

For Elsa, this little trinket is one of the most important things she has in her possession. Not that it was particularly valuable. It might have been, but Elsa was too young to know whether or not it objectively was when she got it. Inside it was vast sentimental value. Represented in this charm was a promise she made ten years ago, to that same redhead that was in the picture.

Sometimes, when she closes her eyes, she can still imagine the day they first met. It was one winter morning, after Christmas. A seven year old Elsa was sitting in her dad's chair reading a book about music when she heard a knocking on the door. A rhythmic one. It went _Knock knock kno-knock knock._ Elsa's mom walked towards the door and answered. While she couldn't see who was there, Elsa could hear the voice of a little girl.

" Hi! My name is Anna and I'm five years old," she heard the little girl introduce herself as. "I was looking out the window of my house, the one to the left, just now and saw snow! It looked so soft and fluffy, and I remember watching a show on the TV about a magical talking snowman and now I really wanna build a snowman! But I thought it would be no fun to build it alone, and building one with my parents almost feels like cheating, since they're so much bigger than I am. I don't have any brothers or sisters, but I remember seeing another girl in the house to next to ours, er, this house! Not that I was spying or anything; I was just bored and was looking out my window one day and thought 'oh they have a girl too! Maybe we can be friends'. Anyway, I asked my parents if I could come here and ask you if I can play with your daughter, and also asking her of course. They said okay and they're right outside. So can I?" She finished. Elsa found myself amused by this girl's little ramble. She could also see her mom look outside to check if this girls' parents were indeed outside. My dad came down the stairs at this time, and my mom explained what the little girl just asked. They both nodded to each other, and called me from the living room.

Elsa put her book down at the table and walked towards them. As she turned towards the girl, she gets her first glimpse of the younger girl. She was wearing a thick winter jacket, a pink scarf with some floral designs on it, and a pink hat. Although mostly covered, Elsa could see part of orange hair peeking out of her hat. She could see bright teal eyes. She also noticed freckles dusted on the younger girl's face.

Elsa's parents looked at Elsa and her mom said, "Sweetie, this little girl is Anna, and she asked us if you would like to play with her."

Elsa looked towards her mom, then towards Anna and said, quietly, "Hello. My name's Elsa." Probably not the best introduction, but it was enough for her. She was (and still is) shy and didn't talk very often. Luckily for her, Anna was a talker.

"Ooh, Elsa. That's a pretty name! My name is Anna and I'm five years old! ...though you probly heard me and your mommy. Anyway I was wondering if you, uhm... would.. Do you wanna build a snowman?" Anna asked. She had the most hopeful expression on her face. And Elsa really had no chance to say no. Not when she could actually see the excitement building in the younger girl's eyes. So she agreed. The reaction Anna made was definitely worth it. After putting on her winter clothes (which were nowhere near as thick as Anna's), Elsa went outside to play with the little girl. They built many (misshapen) snowmen, had snowball fights, and made snow angels. All the while, both girls were smiling wide and laughing, both sets of parents sitting on the porch watching their little girls play. For Elsa, this is quite possibly her most fond memory.

The pair grew very close after that. Anna would come over to Elsa's house very often, and occasionally Elsa would go over to theirs. Neighbors passing by would often mistake the two for sisters. Sadly, this all had to end after about three years, when Elsa's dad's work got relocated. The Wolfhart family had to move out of Delle City. That fact broke Anna and Elsa's hearts. Before leaving, Elsa asked her mom if they could go buy something. Anything that she and Anna could share, even if they were far away. Together, they found these snowflake necklaces, which had charms split right in the middle. When moving day arrived, Elsa knocked on Anna's door to give one last goodbye. She was already standing there, tears in her eyes. Elsa had tears as well. Elsa gave Anna the necklace, and immediately pulled her into a tight hug.

During the hug, Elsa whispered to Anna, "It'll be okay Anna. I promise. Just, keep that necklace okay? That way, when we're both tall and grown up, we will still know it's each other. And we will see each other again. Okay? Promise me please." Elsa finished, starting to cry.

Anna said a shaky, "I promise." To which Elsa replied in the same manner. After one last squeeze, Elsa had to leave.

That was the last time Elsa had seen Anna. She'd moved to many places, as her dad seemed to be relocated often. They eventually settled down in Florida, where Elsa attended high school. Throughout their moves, Elsa had always kept an eye out for that shade of hair. Those bright teal eyes. A bright and happy voice. Alas, her searches always ended in vain.

Elsa takes one final look at the necklace, before putting it on. Although she feels doubt about ever finding her before college ends, she keeps that around her at all times. Perhaps as a reminder. Perhaps out a faint hope she'll get lucky. Whatever the reason, she always wears that necklace. After putting it on, Elsa walks out of her dorm, room 264, and walks towards the parking lot to her light blue Toyota.

On her way out of campus, at a stoplight, Elsa looks to her left, out of habit. What she saw, however, shocked her. Though discolored by the car's tinted window, she could clearly see a girl with orange hair, done in braided pigtails looking down at something. The oncoming cars began to move again. Elsa, though, was still in shock.

There was no way right?

Elsa was shocked out of her thoughts by the sound of a loud car horn, probably from the people behind her. Elsa noticed the light had turned green and began to move again. Throughout her entire drive, only one thing raced through her mind.

 _That. That couldn't be. Anna?_


	2. Chapter 2: Anna's day

**_BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEEP BEEEP BEEEEP_**

" _Anna? Anna honey, wake up"_ A voice could be heard, faintly, but steadily growing louder.

"Mooom, jusht five more minush pleaassh" responded a girl, lying in bed.

"But, it's move in day. We need to get ready so we can beat the heavy traffic. You know how long it takes to tame that wild mane of yours" The girl could hear her mom say.

Move-in day. For what? Oh wait. Wait.

"OH RIGHT. COLLEGE. I'M UP. I'M UP. JUST GIMME A MINU- wow" The girl exclaimed. Out of the corner of her eye she could see. Well. Orange hair. Her orange hair. Out of every corner of her eye, actually. "Wow okay, my hair's a mess. Just gimme a bit." She said. She quickly ran into the hotel bathroom, took a shower, tamed her hair, put on her green shirt, pink jacket, and blue skirt, and put her hair into two twin braids. After making sure all of her things were packed, she and her family left the room to check out of their hotel. The family was staying at this hotel, Hollow Bastion Lodging, because they were currently out of state.

This girl is Anna Sol. She is currently 18 years old and had just graduated from Delle City High school, where she graduated with top honors. She will be attending Aren U, which is, quite frankly, on the opposite side of the country. This was the girl's first pick, however, thanks to an amazing art program which Anna just had to be a part of. This girl absolutely loved art. She was always able to easily identify an art's emotions and meaning, and always sought to be able to do the same to others with her art. Sometimes, she claims, it is almost as if the art pieces come to life and speak to her. Not literally of course… probably. Anna's been pretty much jumping in her car seat out of excitement the entire time they've been in the rental car. The family stopped at a breakfast diner, where Anna ate waffles.

After breakfast, on the drive to Aren U, Anna took out her sketchbook and colored pencils from her backpack. She opened it up to her most recent drawing. Her first assignment actually.

Three weeks ago, Aren U sent out an email to all students who had been enrolled in their Art 101 class. They were asked to draw a building, any kind of building. The assignment was to be turned into the art office on move-in day. Although students were made aware that this was more for participation points than anything, they did mention that drawings that were considered good enough might be displayed publicly on their online gallery, with proper credit towards the artist of course. Anna was a girl who was always determined to do her best, and when it came to art, she absolutely refused to do anything unless she could be satisfied with the end result. She immediately began to brainstorm.

Unfortunately, a week had passed, and Anna still had no idea what to draw. The trash can in her room was filled with crumpled up papers, each with a different idea drawn on. Anna decided to look around her room for inspiration. Anything would do. She'd been drawing ideas for almost an entire week, but with no progress. However, she'd finally found what she was looking for. Hanging on her bedroom door was a necklace, or rather a bracelet based on how she wears it, with half a snowflake on it as a charm. It was meant to be a necklace, but Anna outgrew the chain, and was never able to replace it. Now she just wrapped it around her wrist. When Anna looked at this necklace, she suddenly remembered a thought from her childhood. From her childhood best friend, Elsa. This necklace was given to her by Elsa, and was meant to represent a promise that they would meet again. She remembered days of playing around in the snow. Days relaxing on around the fireplace. And most relevant to the situation at hand, days spent playing with their toys, and their imagination.

One of the coolest (pun totally intended) things Anna ever remembered about their imaginary world was the idea of an ice castle, perched atop a mountain. Elsa absolutely adored the snow and all things winter, something shared by Anna. She decided that that would be what she drew. That would be her building. The ice castle she and Elsa revisited often as children. She decided it was the perfect thing. She already had an idea as to how it would look. Not to mention, if it was drawn well enough, it would be posted somewhere online. Somewhere where Elsa might see it. And just like that, Anna began drawing, and unlike her previous attempts, this one just kept on flowing.

Unfortunately… Anna was still not done. Not that it wasn't close. She was really, really close. She was literally applying the final touches on her way to school Adding in extra shading, some snow in the wind. And most importantly, the light of the sun reflecting off the ice. Satisfied, she took one last look to admire her work.

 ** _HONK_**

Anna heard that noise suddenly, and was shocked out of her admiration. Apparently someone hadn't moved when the light turned green. Her family took their first stop at the art office, where she would turn in her work. She signed some papers, basically giving the school permission to do whatever with the art, so long as credit would be given to her. Afterwards, she and her family drove to the North side of campus, where her dorm building was. Castle Mount Dorms. Her parents helped her unload everything from the car and helped carry them up to the second floor where her room would be.

Anna followed the numbers of the doors. _266…264… ah 262_ , she thought to herself. As she inserted her key into the door, she could hear a voice, clearly frustrated, coming from further in the inside, probably the bedroom. When Anna and her parents walked into the bedroom, they saw a brunette, wearing a pink dress, lying on a bed, talking on the phone.

"Mom, seriously. Like I told you an hour ago, I am fine. 100% okay. No you do not need to come here to my campus. Seriously, I'm settled in and perfectly o- Oh hi there. What? No. No not you mom, my roommate just came in. NO she isn't making me uncomfortable. PLEASE don't come here. Please. Anyway I gotta go. Yeah, love you too mom, bye," the brunette finished. She let out a deep sigh before looking back up at Anna and her family. "Sorry about that. My mom can be a little… overprotective. Anyways, my name is Rapunzel, and I guess I'm your roommate for this semester. It's nice to meet you" She continued, extending out her hand.

Anna grabbed Rapunzel's hand and said, "Hi Rapunzel. My names Anna, and it's nice to meet you too. These two are my parents Christian and Andrea Sol." After introductions, Rapunzel let Anna go so she could unpack all her things. It doesn't (well it might, depending on your point of view) help that Rapunzel received yet another call from her phone, supposedly from her mother. Again.

After all of Anna's things were unpacked, it was time for her to say bye to her parents. They both gave each other a tight hug. After letting go, Anna said, "Don't worry you two, I'll be fine. I'll call often too. Not as much as her mom does but, enough. Just so you know I'm okay. And so I know you're okay alright? Not that you'll be in any trouble but, it'll still be nice you know? T-to hear you guys. And to tell y-you two how I am right?" Anna was close to tears.

"Of course it's alright," Andrea said.

"We'll keep in touch as well, but agreed. Not as much as your roommate's mother." Christian said.

The Sol family brought each other into one giant hug before saying their byes. As soon as her parents left, Anna lied down in bed and sighed. She thought about how her friends were doing. She knows two of her friends, Kristoff and Sven followed her to Aren U. Well not actually followed, but they're there. Anna was grateful for that. She hoped her parents would be safe on their flight home. And lastly, she thought of a little blonde girl.

And with that, she suddenly remembered something in her bag. She grabbed it, opened up, and took out her bracelet. She looked at the charm before putting it on her wrist. Oddly enough, it always seemed to calm her down. She lied down in bed, and stared at the charm on her wrist, a smile on her face.

"Ooh. What's that?" She heard Rapunzel say.

Anna looked to where her voice came from and just said, "I'll tell you some other time. It's a long story." Rapunzel accepted that answer and asked Anna if she'd like to go eat dinner with her. Anna got out of bed and accepted. The two walked over to the school café. Over dinner, Anna told Rapunzel about herself, really simple stuff about her high school and her family. Where she came from. Her major. Rapunzel told Anna things about her as well. How she was originally from Florida. About her pet chameleon. And about how insanely protective her mother was. Rapunzel was honestly surprised her mother let her come to this school, but I guess even she knew she couldn't stop Rapunzel if she really wanted to go to college. They both shared stories and had a great time. They quickly became friends. Anna even coined the nickname Punzie for her that night, which Rapunzel didn't really seem to mind. On their way back from the Café, as they walked through the halls of their dorm, Anna could hear someone singing. Anna had to stop walking because, well, it just sounded so pretty and, oddly enough, nostalgic. When Rapunzel asked, Anna just told her she could go on ahead, since she wanted to admire the song just for a little while longer. Rapunzel just shrugged and went to their room. With that, Anna closed her eyes and tried to listen to the lyrics.

…

 _And now whatever way our stories end  
I know you have rewritten mine  
By being my friend._

…

She couldn't quite pick out the song it was, so she couldn't figure out why it all sounded so familiar. She turned to see where it was coming from. She looked towards the direction where she heard the music coming from. Room 264. Anna vowed she'd come knock on that door sometime this semester and find out who's voice that belonged to. Whoever it was lived next door anyway, so they were likely to meet eventually right? Right. With that, Anna walked into her room. For the remainder of the night, Anna chatted with her friends on Facebook and checked if anything interesting had popped up on Tumblr or Reddit. She set her alarm for 8:00 so that she'd have time to get ready for her first class, which was at 9:30. At around midnight, Anna went to bed. She took off her bracelet and took one last look at the charm. She smiled and put in on the desk closest to her bed.

She closed her eyes and smiled, thinking of two things. The beautiful voice she heard in the halls, and wondering where Elsa was now. Lastly, thinking of how easily she made friends with her new roommate, she thought, "I think. I think, is going to be a good year."


	3. Chapter 3: Was that?

_Standing atop an icy balcony was a little girl. Her blonde hair was fixed into a thick braid that was hung over her left shoulder, snowflakes decorated on it. She is wearing a blue dress with a translucent cape attached to it, both of which are made of ice. She looks over her railing to observe what is happening below. However, all that is visible is snow. No signs of life. Not even a footprint of any sort of living creature._

 _This little girl's name is Elsa, and she is the queen of this castle. A castle she created by her own control over all things snow and ice. Just as she was about to walk back into her castle, she heard a loud roar. She turned around to see a blue dragon, with a figure riding atop it, flying towards her. The little girl smiled, knowing who it was. The dragon stopped and hovered just outside the balcony, so that the person riding atop it could meet the queen at eye level. This person, a knight so it seems, takes off their helmet revealing, another little girl. Her hair a fiery shade of orange, don't into two tiny pigtails. This girl was the queen's best friend and most trusted knight, Sir Anna of the West._

 _"Hello, Sir Anna, to what do I owe this visit?" Elsa asked._

 _Anna smiled and began saying "Ah Elsa! I-I mean Queen Elsa, yes. I just flew in to say hi! Oh and to play. I mean, you don't have to. You're a queen, and queens are very busy people. You might be finding new chocolate springs. Or finding an all you can eat ice cream shop for your citizens. This was weird. Maybe I sho-"_

 _Elsa stopped her friend mid-ramble and said, "Oh Anna, of course I'll play wi-"_

 _Just then a huge shake was felt throughout the castle. Elsa looked over to the horizon and saw a long line of toy sold- I mean trolls. Evil trolls. And they were approaching the castle._

 _"I'm sorry Anna, but play time's going to have to wait. We're under attack!" Elsa said, wasted no time and conjured up a huge snowman army to fight the trolls. "Anna, are you ready?" Elsa continued, facing her knight._

 _"Of course. I was born ready, El- I mean your Majesty" Anna answered. She took out her trusty sword, Frostbite. This was a sword made of both metal and Elsa's ice. With the army of snowmen behind her, Anna flew on her noble dragon and headed straight for the troll king. However, just as the final blow was about to be struck, a giant blizzard thre-_

 _"Okay you two, it's time to clean up. Dinner's almost ready," A voice said._

 _"But mommy, Anna and I were just about to beat the enemy troll armyy" Elsa said to her mom._

 _"After dinner honey. Anna, you're free to stay if you want. We're having spaghetti." Elsa's mom said before walking out of Elsa's room._

 _"C'mon Elsa! Let's hurry up and go. You're mom's making spaghetti!" Anna said excitedly. Elsa just giggled and helped Anna clean up the toy soldiers, legos, and put away the toy lightsaber. When they finished, Anna said, "C'mon! Let's get the spaghe-"_

 ** _RING_**

 _Wait, what?_

 ** _RING_**

~~o~~

 ** _RING RING RING RING RI-_**

Elsa swiftly shut off her alarm and lazily got out of bed. She walked straight to the bathroom. The usual morning routine. However, when she looked in the mirror, she was pleasantly surprised. Unlike how it is usually, her hair was oddly neat. There was still stray strands of hair sticking out, and her hair was definitely still messy. Not how she would usually have her hair when she goes out in public. But, compared to her usual fluff ball, this was far more manageable. When she finished her routine, she took another look at her clock. It was 7:30 now, which would give her plenty of time to walk to her next class, which was only around 15 minutes away. After putting her necklace under her blue hood jacket, she grabbed her room keys and backpack and walked to her class.

She got there with plenty of time to spare and sat right in the front. At around 7:55, more and more people began to fill up the room. At exactly 8:00, an elderly man, probably the professor, walked in and passed the syllabus to each student. Afterwards, he walked back up to the front of the class and began to introduce himself.

"Good morning class. Welcome to this Architecture course. I am Dr. Graves, and I will be your professor for this semester. While typically, our classes will be done in a studio, we will be meeting in this classroom for this week, as we are mostly just going over formalities. Please read over the syllabus as homework; we will be talking about it in the next class." Dr. Graves took out a top hat from his desk and said, "Now, I will be passing around this hat. Inside, there are several numbered pieces of paper. Please pick one, and pass it to the next student."

With this, Elsa put the syllabus in her bag. She, as well as every other student in this class, knew where this was going. Among architecture students, it was well known that, in this particular Architecture class, the students would be making models of drawings done by incoming Freshmen enrolled in Art 101. At the end of the semester, they were to present these models to the Freshman who drew the building they had chosen. It was meant to encourage creativity among the young architects, as these buildings could be structures of pretty much anything. Recently though, the drawings all tended to be of some generic building, probably due to the art students caring less as of late.

Elsa was the first person to pick out a number. She got number one. After the hat was passed to everybody in class, Dr. Graves told the class, "Okay class. When your number is called, please come up to my desk and choose a drawing. As your semester project, it will be your responsibility to make a model of whatever drawing you pick. Also please remember to keep what project you have a secret. From everyone. It ruins the fun of the reveal. After picking your project, you will introduce yourself to the class. Alright then, number 1, please come up."

Elsa stood up and walked to the front. She picked up the book and glanced over all the artwork. The first few had her discouraged. Many of what she saw had been what she had expected _._

House- _Boring_. Another house- _Seriously?_ Apartment- _Still boring_. House in the sky- _Now that just makes no sense_. She saw some more interesting ones as she got farther into the book. There were cathedrals, stadiums, concert halls, skyscrapers, an ice castle, a muse-. _Wait, What?_ Elsa turned the page back to the ice castle and was. Well. Shocked. Upon further inspection, she saw the intricately designed Ice castle in more detail. It was perched on the side of the mountain. There was a giant staircase leading to the entrance. She could tell by the shading that the building appeared to be hexagonal, almost like a snowflake, with several pillars. There is a balcony located above the double door entrance. This image. This castle. It just seemed too… familiar. The dream Elsa had earlier came back to her. This was her castle. The one she played in. The one she created with-

"I'll take this Dr. Grave." Elsa said, quickly. Afterwards, she introduced herself to the class and walked back to her seat. When she sat down, she placed the picture into her bag. She almost felt like she was in another dream. She pinched herself just to make sure. It hurt; this was no dream. Elsa looked at her phone to see the time. 8:15 a.m. Elsa sighed. As the second person was called, Elsa thought one thing.

 _This is going to be a long class._

 _~~o~~_

 ** _BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BE-_**

Anna slammed her hand onto the alarm, to shut it off. From under her covers, she sleepily took a peek at the clock. 8:25. She then closed her eyes again slowly, only for them to widen up immediately. Not that she was late for class. Her first class wasn't for about another hour. The problem?

Her first class was 25 minutes away by walking. It usually takes her at least 50 minutes to get her hair in order. And judging by the strands of orange in her vision, she knew she'd need every second. Just as quickly as she'd opened her eyes, she'd gotten out of bed and ran to the shower. She had to get this done quickly; she really couldn't afford to be late for her first day. Nope. Nope.

~~o~~

Elsa sleepily dragged herself up the stairs. Her professor had let the class out at around nine. It was around 9:15 when she got back to the second floor of her dorm. She's been lost in thought about the drawing she currently has in her possession on the way back. _Could it be? Or is this all just a strange coincidence_. Maybe if she was just sleepy, she might have noticed. Or if she was just lost in thought she might have noticed. But she was both. And because she was both, she failed to notice the voice yelling out the words "WATCH OUT!" And before she knew it, she was on the ground, lying on her back. Her vision was a blurred, and she could see… someone was on top of her.

She could also hear a voice talking to her. "Hello? Are you okay? Oh my god, please tell me you're okay. I am sooo sorry. Can you stand up? Can you hear me? Helloo?"

Elsa's vision and hearing started to clear up. She shut her eyes and reopened them quickly, and everything was clear. Elsa was suddenly aware of the position she was in, a girl's arms right next to her head, holding the girl up. When she looked at the face of the girl, however, she was suddenly completely awestruck. She saw bright teal eyes. Orange braids near her face. She saw noticeable freckles on the girls face. It couldn't be. Right?

When Anna noticed the girl started moving again, she was relieved. She asked again, "Hello, can you hear me? Can you get up? Are you alright?" Elsa, still caught in her daze, nodded, presumably an answer for all three questions. Anna got off of Elsa, and helped her up.

"Oh thank god you're okay. I am sooo sorry. I can't believe I did that. And on my first day too. Sorry I can't stay; I'm in a huge rush. I'd really like to make it up to you though, so, if you can, you should come over to my room after around five," Anna quickly said. When she realized what she might have just implied, she blushed, and clarified. "To apologize more. So I can apologize more, I mean. More properly. I didn't mean it like… well what it might've meant otherwise. I'm so sorry this is really, really awkward. Or I'm just awkward. You're gorgeous." Again, Anna flushed red. "Wait, what. Where'd that come from? Just… uhm… please come to room 262 after 5 pm so I can apologize for when I ran into you. And for everything after. I gotta run, hope you stop by. Bye!" Anna finished quickly before running to the stairs.

Elsa on the other hand, really only picked out three words from the girl's little ramble. Gorgeous. Room 262. And 5pm. Turning towards the direction the girl ran, she whispered to herself "… Anna?"

~~o~~

Anna managed to make it to class on time by running. She was in such a rush, she somehow forgot her bracelet. Luckily her friend Kristoff, her best friend from high school, was in the same class and saved her a seat. She walked up to the seat and greeted him.

"Hey, Anna. Barely made it." He said.

"Yeah, I know. Woke up late. Ran into someone. Like not "ran into someone I know" ran into someone, but actual run into someone." She responded.

"… ran into someone?" He asked, obviously confused.

"I'll tell you after class while we get lunch; professor's here" Anna responded back, pointing towards the front.

The professor introduced himself as Dr. Ark. She passed out the syllabi to everyone in class and went through it with everyone in class. As Anna skimmed through everything, she noticed something that seemed out of the ordinary towards the end of the semester. It said _Architecture meet up_.

After going through it, Dr. Ark asked, "So are there any questions?"

Anna raised her hand up and quickly asked, "Uhm, Dr. Ark? I was looking at the schedule and noticed something, without a date, called Architecture meet up? I'm a little curious as to what that means."

"Ah Miss Sol, excellent question," Dr. Ark acknowledged. "All of you remember the art assignments you had over summer right?" The class nodded. "Good. Well those drawings were presented to the Architecture students this morning. We've had a long tradition of collaboration with the Architecture department in this fashion. The architecture students each chose a drawing, and they will be making a model of the drawing as their project. For those whose work was chosen, we'll inform you as the scheduled date arrives. Naturally, we will not have classes on that day. For those we inform, you will be allowed to see the architecture student who made the model of your building and see the building itself. We also request you not reveal what drawing you did. It ruins the surprise. Anymore questions?" She asked once more. "None? Ok, class dismissed."

Anna sat there in thought. She wondered if someone had chosen her drawing of the ice castle. She wondered what it would look like in 3D. Lastly, she wondered if Elsa would somehow be able to see it, wherever she was.


	4. Chapter 4: What if she is?

"So Fiestypants, tell me," Kristoff said, before taking a bite out of his carrot. "Why were you almost late for class? Didn't think you'd be that close on the first day."

Anna sat in her seat, looking at her friend in mock disgust. She's never really understood her friend taking out a whole carrot out of his bag and just biting into it. She took a sip of her coke before saying, "Like I said in class, I woke up late. Don't even know how though. I had it set for 8 and everything, and I somehow managed to sleep through 25 minutes of it. You know how my hair gets in the morning. Man, I even slept early too." She took a large bite of the pizza sitting right in front of her.

"You also said something about," Kristoff said, in between taking bites out of his burger, "running into someone? Like, actually running into someone?"

Anna could feel the warmth creeping into her face as she recounted the events. She wasn't completely oblivious to the position she was in after she ran into the poor girl. Just, at the moment, she was too preoccupied making sure no major damage was done to think about, well, anything else. Right now, though, she clearly felt embarrassed about the situation she had put herself in earlier. And she didn't really want to tell Kristoff about it. He's got too much embarrassing stories from high school. So she tucks her hair behind her ear (a nervous habit) and shakily tries to change the subject.

"Ehehe, so Kris. What'd you think about the thing the professor said about our drawings and the models. Pretty cool right?" She asked nervously.

"C'mon Anna, you know you're one of the like, twenty people who actually took that seriously. Besides," he said, getting another look at his friend's face, "judging from the face you're making, I get the feeling I really wanna hear about this."

Anna sighs and takes one more, long, sip of her coke. "If you say so. There isn't really much to tell. I woke up late and wasn't paying anywhere near enough attention to my surroundings as I should have as a result. When I ran into the stairs I kinda just, you know, ran into her. I felt sooo bad about it. Looking at her face after she fell down, I could tell she wasn't paying attention either. She also probably wasn't expecting to, essentially, be tackled onto the ground. Anyway, I stayed there a little longer to make sure she was okay. I helped her up and asked her to come over to my room after five." Kristoff raised an eyebrow. "So I could _apologize_ Kris. Jeez, get your mind out of the gutter. I was in too big a rush to make sure she was perfectly alright, but she seemed fine. Anyway, the girl didn't seem all too angry, so I hope she comes over. I still feel really bad, and I'd like to apologize better. Heck, maybe I can make a new friend." Anna took one more sip, satisfied with her answer.

 _Good job Anna. Almost no ramble, and you didn't mention how you called the girl gorgeous after helping her up._

"Wait, you told this girl what?" Kristoff said, holding back a laugh.

"D… Did I just say that out loud?" Anna said, embarrassed.

"Yup," Kristoff laughed out.

"Ugh. But Kris, it was totally true okay? Like I'm sure she gets it all the time, so it's no big deal. Probably. I mean, how could she not. It's obvious!" Anna exclaimed, fully aware of the ramble that was about to start, but powerless to stop it. "She had like, the perfect kind of pale skin. It looked almost flawless, but there are these freckles on her face that are there, but just barely there. I mean, I'm tired of my own freckles, but on her, they looked so cute. And her hair was so perfect too. It was like, I don't know the name of the color, some form of blonde? I think platinum blonde is the name. And it was a braid. An absolutely perfect braid. I bet her hair is just amazingly soft to touch. Her skin was so soft too. Like when I helped her up, her hand was definitely soft. The biggest thing I noticed were her eyes. Like wow, they were so pretty. They were this, almost icy shade of blue. Kris, you don't even- they looked so perfect. There was just something about them, I could probably just stare into them all day. And just… yeah…" Anna finished her ramble and was completely intent on looking… anywhere else but her friend. If she wasn't red before, she feels like her face looks like a tomato now.

Kristoff, to his credit, wasn't laughing. Or reacting in any sort of way that would be typical for him. Usually when Anna rambles like this, at best, he'd give this amused smile. At worst, he'd be laughing loudly... a little too loudly. Right now though, he seemed like he was thinking about something. As if something Anna said was similar to something she'd rambled about before. Something he's heard from her dozens of times. He was sure of it. This wasn't the first platinum blonde, blue eyes, pale freckled skinned girl Anna's ever rambled about. Then it hit him.

"Wait, Anna. Can you repeat that again?" He asked.

"What? No, I'm not rambling for you again. What?" Anna said indignantly.

"What? Wait, no I didn't mean it like that. So you're saying this girl has pale skin, light freckles, platinum blonde hair, and blue ices?" Kristoff asked, noticing his friends tone.

"Yeah, why? …wait Kris, you can't be implying…" Anna said, suddenly aware of everything she had just said.

Just as Kristoff was about to answer, a burly brown haired boy came up to their table. It was Kristoff's fraternal twin, Sven. These two shared, pretty much everything really. Including that carrot Kristoff bit into a while ago.

Anna still would never understand how either of them can do that.

"Hey bro…" Kristoff started. He then continued talking to Sven, in what could only be described as their own personal language. The two of them were part of a huge family. Their home always had cousins, uncles, and they had at least five siblings, excluding themselves. They wanted their own little way to talk without having others know what they were talking about, so they made up whatever code it is they're saying right now.

After what appeared to be them finishing, Sven turned towards Anna and said, "Congratulations. Sounds to me like you just found that long lost childhood friend of yours. Good job." With Sven, it was hard to tell if he was using sarcasm or not. Anna turned to Kristoff for confirmation.

"Yeah, I think so too," he said noting the confusion on her face.

Anna sighed and looked around trying to think. It's not like she was sure it wasn't her. She didn't really give it much thought, since she was more concerned about making sure the poor girl didn't break anything. Looking at the situation, she can imagine the resemblance and could see where they're coming from. At the same time though…

"Okay you two. Maybe it's her, maybe it's not. If she is, then yay. But what if she's not? I'd rather not, you know, expect anything, only to be disappointed. Again. I've kept my eyes open for anyone with those specific features. And believe me when I say I've met people who fit that description perfectly, but… it was never her. I can't go through that again. So this girl could very well may be Elsa, but until I'm 99.9% sure, I'm not going to have any expectations alright? Besides, I don't even know where that girl lives, or if she's coming tonight," Anna finishes off.

"Whatever you say. Anyway, Sven and I have a class soon, so we gotta go. See ya around later?" Kristoff asked.

"Yeah. Go ahead, see you later" Anna responded. As soon as they left, Anna began to think about the girl.

 _I know I said I wouldn't think about it but. What if that girl actually…_

~~o~~

Elsa, on the other hand , was definitely thinking about the girl she ran into this morning. She had since taken off her necklace and was pacing around her room, necklace in hand. She stared at it, trying to figure out what to do. She'd been nervous before for several things. Big presentations. School plays. That one time she tried asking her ex-crush on a date back in high school. But this. This was different.

Her mind was going back and forth. _What if she is? What if she isn't?_ She'd been repeating that for what felt like hours. When she stopped and looked at a clock… it had actually been hours. Huh.

Elsa sighed and resigned herself to a chair and began to question herself.

 _Should I go? Should I ask her? What if she isn't her?_

 _…_ _Oh not this again please. Even if she isn't her, it'd still make sense to go. It's not like I'd risk it not being Anna. It all just seemed too, familiar. The color of her hair. Those perfectly teal eyes. Those adorable freckles._

 _…_ _Are you willing to risk being disappointed again though? Besides, if she is Anna, what do you plan to do after?_

 _…_ _Whatever we want._

With that thought, Elsa got off the chair, enclosing her necklace in her left hand. She walked out of her room and walked… five steps to the left. She stood outside of room 262… just stood.

 _Come on. Knock_. She thought to herself.

 _Seriously knock. Why aren't you knocking? I know you know how to knock._ Still standing there, fidgeting in place.

 _It's for her. For her._ And with that thought, Elsa sighed and tightened her fist again.

 _Okay. Here goes nothing._ She raises her hand and begins to knock.


	5. Chapter 5: The Found You moment

It was around 4:00 pm when Anna finally got back to her dorm. Anna knew Rapunzel wouldn't be back for another two hours, thanks to her schedule. Which was good. Probably. It sure saved Anna time explaining why she was pacing around the room. She had hot chocolate simmering in a pot in her kitchen. Nothing soothed her quite like chocolate. Plus, maybe her guest might likes hot chocolate, and she can give her some to apologize with. No one could dislike chocolate right?

 _But what if she did dislike chocolate?_

 _Then she isn't her._

That thought. That tiny whisper in her mind ceased her pacing. After making sure the chocolate wasn't burnt (Because to Anna, burnt chocolate was on the same level of bad as kicking sad puppies), she pulled out a chair and quickly sat on it, releasing a grunt.

 _Why am I so worried? Why am I so anxious? It's not like I'm looking forward to explaining why I ran into her. Or explaining every awkward moment after. And I'm definitely wasn't thinking this girl might just be my long lost best friend. Of course not…_

 _But what if she is? How would I begin to even..._

With those thoughts, Anna dropped her hands onto the table, and a _klink_ sound was made. Anna opened her eyes and looked at the snowflake that was at its center. _Of course. I can ask with that! But how would I even bring it up? If it's some stranger, she might be weirded out. Plus… it never worked before…_

 _I got it! Maybe I can try and figure out if she could be by asking her things. Yeah! That'll totally work. And of course I'll start off with one of my old friend's two weaknesses. Chocola-_

 **-** ** _Knock Knock kno-knock knock-_**

Suddenly shaken out of her thoughts, Anna quickly said, "COMING!" … Probably an octave higher than she intended. She put her charm on her right wrist and hid it under her jacket.

Elsa, on the other hand, was struggling not to laugh. The response coming from inside the room had broken all prior tension she had built up standing outside…

Which unfortunately came back right away the moment the door handle began to move. Her grip on the snowflake tightened quickly. Elsa winced in pain a bit and suddenly began worrying again.

 _What do I do? What do I do? Maybe this is a mistake. I could just go bac-_

Her thoughts were cut short when the same orange haired girl opened the door, inviting her in with a smile. Elsa initially hesitated, but she walked into the room, albeit fairly slowly. The first thing she noticed was the lack of… anything really in the room. There didn't seem to be much in terms of decoration. Then again, move-in day was only yesterday. Unsure of what to do, Elsa just stood in the middle of the living room, her right hand grabbed onto her left arm.

Anna noticed this and said, "Please, feel free to sit down anywhere. Make yourself at home." _Time for the first test_ , she thought to herself before saying, "I've got hot chocolate on the stove. You want any?"

Elsa, at the mention of chocolate, turned towards the girl and nodded quickly.

 _Score one_ , Anna thought, before pouring the chocolate into two cups, one green and one blue. _Test number two, though this one might not be as good. Favorite colors change_. _Whatever, it'll be a plus anyway._ She walked to the table and placed both cups on the table, giving the girl the first pick.

Elsa, naturally, picked the blue one.

 _Score two_. "So... I hope you enjoy my little peace offering. It's kind of my way of apologizing. Again. For running into you this morning. I was running late and was in a rush. I didn't notice you, or anything really, around me. I'm really sorry," Anna says bowing her head.

Elsa looked at this girl for a moment and then blinked. Oddly enough, she found herself relaxing more around her (though her grip wasn't loosening up anytime soon). Elsa still wanted to find out if this girl is Anna, but she wasn't sure how to bring it up yet. Elsa mentally sighed. _Well, I guess I can start with this._

"I accept your apology. It's not like you meant to crash into someone on the first day of school," Elsa replied.

Anna raised her head after hearing that, a bright smile on her face. When Elsa saw that smile, she felt… something. She wasn't really sure what, but it was definitely something familiar. A feeling akin to nostalgia perhaps. The smile also seemed to be infectious, as Elsa began to feel her own smile forming. Something she was powerless to stop.

"That's. That's great," Anna said. When she focused back on the girl's smile in front of her, she also felt something… nostalgic. Not quite like anything she's felt in a long time. And just like that, Anna needed to know. Was this girl sitting in front of her Elsa? She had to know. She was, however, afraid to ask about the necklace. Every time she had resorted to using, it was never her. Not to mention it was always a little awkward, something she'd like to avoid with this, particular girl. If it wasn't Elsa, Anna still felt like she'd like to get closer to this person. To be her friend. But what else could she use? What else? Els…a

 _Her name. I can use her name._

"So… I know we started on the wrong foot. And I know we just met and all, but would you like to be friends?" Anna said quickly. _Darn, forgot._

Elsa, still smiling, contemplated herself. How would she find out? She couldn't very well use the necklace, since her hand still refused to loosen its grip on.. the rather pointed charm. _Wait, did she say friends? … Well that was easy I could…_

"Of course. I'd love to be friends with you. I would like to ask one thing of you though." Elsa said.

 _Yes! Another chance_. "Oh sure. Did you need anything Els…a…" Anna said slowly, observing the girl across her. Elsa's eyes widened slightly in surprised, but perhaps not enough for Anna to notice. "… a cup of water. Some snacks? Anything Els?" Anna continued and finished, still looking at the girl in front of her.

After the initial shock of… sort of hearing her name, Elsa took a moment to look at the girl in front of her. This redhead was staring at her so intently. Almost observing. Almost as if she was expecting something from her. Suddenly, something clicked in her mind. She looked at the cup next to her. _Blue_. This girl gave her a choice for some reason, rather than just giving her any cup. The girl in front of her appeared to look as if nothing was out of the ordinary. But Elsa could tell. She could tell something was in the other girl's mind. As if she was testing her.

 _Testing_. And with that thought, Elsa began to laugh. Not a little giggle. Not something controlled. It was a completely unrestrained, side-killing laughter. All the while she thought, _Oh my god. I can't believe this is. Oh my. My sides. Ow. Ow._

Anna, on the other hand, was quite confused. The blonde just started laughing hysterically. She tried to see think if anything she'd done had been funny in anyway, but she really couldn't tell. Elsa noticed all this however. She was always good at reading people.

Scratch that. Not people. Person. A person. More specifically.

 _Anna._ There was now almost no doubt in her mind that this girl was indeed Anna. But, it was time for just a little bit of fun. Not to mention, there was still that slight bit of doubt, the doubt which kept her left hand completely stuck in a fist. So she got up, much to the concern of the redhead. Elsa reassured her that everything was fine.

"I just… want to play a little game with you," Elsa said, grabbing her chair and moving it next to Anna. She then turned her chair so it was facing Anna. "It might be a little… crazy, so I hope you'll be okay with it."

 _Crazy?_ _Interesting. Let's see where this goes._ "Sure, I'm up for anything," Anna replied.

"Okay good, " Elsa said, "Now turn your chair towards me." Anna did as told. Elsa smiled and said "So I am going to look right into your eyes. And I'm going to say... anything really. The moment something I say does not apply to you, you tell me okay?" Anna nodded in confirmation.

"Okay. Let's begin." Elsa looked deep into Anna's eyes. She could see several emotions present. Worry. Excitement. Nervousness. Confusion. And oddly enough. Anticipation. "I'm seeing something that looks like the north corner of the West Coast. Starts with… a D. Delle town. That's it. You come from Delle Town" And there's a new emotion. Surprise. And… hope? "Lemme think. What else do I see? I see white. Fluff? Cold… Snow. I see snow. Winter. A favorite season perhaps? Or maybe a memory?" At that moment, she could actually start to see tears in the girl's eyes. Not a slight bit of sadness though.

 _And that's all I needed to know,_ Elsa thought. _Good thing too, I can feel tears starting to build in my eyes. I better finish this up._

"Actually, I'm still seeing white. But a little less fluff. Actually no fluff. I'm sensing… something crystalline? And still cold. Perhaps…" With that, Elsa finally felt her grip loosen. "A snowflake?" Elsa finished, holding up her own necklace. In that moment, the only emotion in the other gi- wait no. Anna. Anna's. Only one emotion was present in Anna's eyes. Complete and utter joy. She also saw the tears in Anna's eyes begin to flow.

Judging by the heat trailing down on her own face, Elsa's could tell she started tearing herself. "And finally, my last statement. Your name is A-"

Before Elsa could finish her statement however, Anna jumped out of her chair and tackled Elsa into, what was possibly, the tightest hug she'd ever given. Anna cried out, "ELSA, YOU DORK."

Elsa just smiled, hugging Anna as tightly as she could, finishing her sentence, "nna. Anna."

"Elsa you dummy. Where. Have. You. Been?! I've been looking ever-" Anna struggled to say. She was crying, and laughing, a little too hard. "everywhere for you. I've mi-missed you so much"

Elsa tightened her hug and laughed a little bit as well. "I know. I've missed you too."

With that, both girls just sat there taking in everything. Elsa felt a familiar warmth. Just like she felt from Anna when they were younger. Every breath she took had the scent of what could only be described as Anna. It was like being wrapped by a refreshing summer breeze, with a hint of chocolate. Odd? Perhaps. Pleasant? Definitely.

As for Anna, she felt a contrasting cool sensation. Elsa's body temperature was always just a little colder than normal. This never really bothered her. In fact, Anna always found comfort in this cool sensation. It was always the perfect temperature. Elsa always smelled like what Anna imagined winter would smell like, if it was a fragrance. In addition to the cool, she could smell the scent of pine and mint. It was nostalgic, bringing back memories of the day she decided to knock on that house next door.

Both girls remained like that for a while. The sensation of the beating of the other's heart being the truest indication that this wasn't just a dream; that this was real. When Elsa realized that neither she nor Anna was letting go any time soon (why would they anyway?), she carefully got up, getting Anna up in the process, and waddled toward the couch, which was far comfier than that small wooden chair. Sitting on the couch, both girls remained locked in a hug, tears still falling. Both girls had had a long day of worrying and nervousness, which left them mentally drained. Anna was the first one to fall asleep. Elsa managed to stay awake a little longer. She noticed Anna had fallen asleep the moment she heard a quiet snore coming from the redhead. The noise made Elsa smile, relieved she didn't have any early morning classes the next day. She could just sit here and enjoy the comforting presence.

The moments between that and Elsa succumbing to her own exhaustion were very short. The last thing Elsa remembered was seeing a brunette, probably Anna's roommate, entering the room. She seemed confused, but Elsa placed a pointer on her mouth and silently said, "shh." She signaled (or hoped she did anyway) that everything was alright. Rapunzel was, understandably, confused, but nodded and walked into the bedroom. After that, Elsa fell asleep, her head resting on Anna's.

At around 10 o' clock, Elsa woke up. She figured she should probably wake Anna up, since she should probably get some sleep on an actual bed.

"Psst. Psst" Elsa said, shaking Anna.

She was met with Anna scrunching up her face, who sleepily said, "Five more minutes please. The pillow's too comfy to leave."

Elsa giggled. She's not going to deny she's not enjoying using Anna as a pillow either. Doing so would be like denying she liked sleep or that snow was cold. However, Elsa did think Anna would do better to sleep on a proper bed. And since the Anna she knew probably wouldn't wake up in five minutes, Elsa proceeded to poke Anna's face until she woke up.

Or rather opened up one eye, and answered, sleepily annoyed, "…yes?"

Elsa saw a slight pout growing on the younger girl's face. And just. Okay, maybe we can stay like this a little longer. So Elsa said, "Hi."

"Hi me?" Anna sleepily responded. Elsa nodded, smiling, prompting Anna to return the greeting, "Uhm, hi."

Elsa laughed. "You know, I never returned the compliment you gave me this morning." At the mention of that, Anna's face flushed in embarrassment. "You look beautiful yourself."

"T-Thank you" Anna said. If she wasn't red before, she is definitely red now. Though she felt confident she was tired enough to return the compliment right now, without tripping over her own words. "You look beautifull-er." Anna said, sleepily. Ok. Maybe not that tired. "I mean not fuller. You don't look fuller, but more… more beautiful. Yeah." Definitely not that tired. Or maybe too tired. Anna wasn't really sure anymore.

Elsa just giggled. "Thank you," she said, before smiling.

There was a silence between the two. Both girls were contemplating what they'd do now.

Anna decided that she would break the silence. Looking at Elsa's eyes, Anna did break the silence. "We were so close… you know, ten years ago. Do… Do you think we could be like that again?"

Elsa focused on Anna. She could see the most hopeful expression. Anna had also asked with the most hopeful voice. Elsa knew she wouldn't be able to say no to Anna, even if she had sincerely wanted to. Which she didn't. Why would she? She's spent the last ten years missing this girl, searching for her. An experience that she seems to have in common with Anna. She's missed this warmth. This bond they had when they were just little girls looking for someone to play with. The little girl who she had let into her life more easily than she's ever let anyone in. Of course she's had friends since then. And of course she's made many fond memories, but.

They weren't Anna. So, with complete sincerity, Elsa replied.

"I think we can. I would want nothing more than that Anna."


	6. Chapter 6 The Next Day

_**A/N: Re-uploaded to fix a mistake I made. My bad ^^" Thank you Anon review**_

* * *

 _Two little girls were sitting on a couch, both seemingly asleep; their heads leaning on the other's. They appeared to have been watching The Lion King. Both girls had the most relaxed smile on their faces. Someone had walked in on the two girls like this and tried to wake them up, though not before snapping a photo, because they just seemed so adorable._

 _"C'mon you two, wake up._ " _The figure said. It sounded like Anna's mother, Andrea._

 _"Just a few more minushhh" a six year old Anna replied._

 _"C'mon Anna, It's time to go to bed. Ah Elsa you're awake. Please help me move Anna to her bed." Andrea said._

 _A seven year old Elsa was seen, sleepily nodded. "Anna wake up, so you can go back to sleep."_

 _"Fiiine," Anna responded back. The trio walked up to Anna's room upstairs, and Andrea tucked Anna into bed._

 _"Elsa, I'll be downstairs to walk you back home." Andrea said before leaving._

 _"Okay, well. I'm going to go now Anna. Sweet dreams," Elsa says before giving Anna a light good night kiss on her forehead. She then walks towards the door. "Don't go Elsa. Please, I'll miss you." A now eighteen year old Anna said._

 _Elsa, suddenly nineteen, turned around and walked back to Anna. She then said, "Don't worry. We'll see each other again tomorrow okay? The sooner you go to sleep, the sooner we'll see each other again. I promise." She then tucked Anna again, tighter and gave her one more kiss on the forehead. "Good night Anna, and sweet dreams."_

 _Anna, succumbing to the lull of sleep, tiredly replied, "Good night Elsa, see you tomorrow."_

~~o~~

 ** _BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP_**

 _SMACK_ _ **BEEP BEEP BEEP**_

"Ow." Anna grunted, after missing her alarm clock. She continued trying to hit it from under her covers, but she kept on missing. Eventually, she gave up, got out of her covers, and noticed that her alarm clock was actually closer to the other side of her desk, the side farthest from her. Which would explain all the missing. She did hit the snooze button, aiming for another ten minutes of sleep. As she dragged her hand from the far side of her desk back to bed, however, her hand slipped. On what appeared to be a letter.

 _A letter? Where did this… oooh the handwriting looks so perfect. I wonder who it's fro-_ , Anna thought to herself, before noticing the name of the sender.

"From, Elsa" was written on the bottom of the paper.

 _ELSA?! Ok, I'm up. I'm up. Time to actually read this._ Anna thought, before actually paying attention to the words.

 _Dear Anna,_

 _I'm just writing this letter to tell you I had to go back to my dorm. I didn't want to leave you last night without some sort of sign that it was real. That it wasn't all just some dream. Anyway, I set your alarm for around 8 a.m. Hope you don't mind, but I took a look at your Tuesday schedule, just to make sure I had the time okay. After last night, you seemed pretty tired, as was I. I carried you to your bed last night and tucked you in. Like I said last night, I would love nothing more than to be like we were ten years ago. So, I'm going to leave my phone number here: XXX-XXX-XXXX. Please text or call me whenever you need to, or want to. For whatever reason really. I really don't mind…I'd actually prefer you do. Also, oddly enough, we live next door to each other. I live in room 264, and you're free to come over whenever you want, provided I'm there of course. Honestly, I'd prefer you do._

 _From, Elsa_

Anna read the letter. And then blinked. And then blinked again. Realizations began to dawn on her the more awake she got. _That wasn't just a dream_. Anna continued to blink, face seemingly more confused. _Elsa's here._ That thought made her smile softly. Then her eyes suddenly widened. _ELSA'S HERE. AND I HAVE HER NUMBER._ With that thought, Anna quickly grabbed her phone and sent a text message to Elsa:

 _Hey Elsa! This is Anna. So now you have my number! :D Anyway, I just texted to say good morning and to thank you for setting my alarm and bringing me to bed. Also thanks for coming over last night. It was sooo great to see you again, and I'm hoping that we can be close too. And I hope you're aware that I will be taking full advantage of your invitation to visit whenever. :) Room 264 right?_

After sending the text, Anna put her phone down and began preparing for the day. She noticed by the lack of orange strands… everywhere that her hair was oddly not as messy as it usually is. She went to take a shower, dressed up, and did her hair into twin braids, like usual. After making sure everything looked alright, she went outside of the bedroom to get some breakfast: Cereal and milk. After fixing it up, she sat down at the dining table, across Rapunzel, who appeared to be reading something on her laptop.

Anna began to eat when Rapunzel asked, "So, what was up last night? Who was that girl?"

Anna, clearly not expecting a question, nor knowing that Rapunzel had walked in on the two last night, choked a bit on her cereal and began to cough. After calming herself down, Anna responded, "That was… she's a friend."

Rapunzel quirked an eyebrow and asked, "Just a friend? You two seemed pretty comfortable for just friends don't you think?"

Anna flushed a little bit, catching onto the implications in that statement. She hastily answered, "Yeah! Just a friend. Well not really just a friend but." _Anna stop._ " She's a friend. Like a really close friend. Except not really? I want her to be close. Again." _No, don't stop there. Clarify yourself._ "She's kind of an old friend. Old as in I knew her a long time ago, not like old old. She's about our age, maybe a little older. And just, I'm going to shut up now." Anna finished, blushing. Again. Why this always happens to her, she'll never know.

"Again? Wait, how old?" Rapunzel asked, curious.

Anna sighed before looking at her phone for the time. She had about two hours until her first class, with Rapunzel having about an hour and a half. _Wait, why did Elsa wake me up so early_ Anna thought. She sat down and told Rapunzel the story of how she met Elsa. She told her about the times they spent together when they were little, of course leaving out the embarrassing bits. She also told her about Elsa having to leave, and the promise they made ten years ago, eventually catching up until right now.

"And that's the story," Anna finished off.

How did Rapunzel respond to this story?

"That sounds… almost cliché to be completely blunt," Rapunzel said. Noting her roommate deflate a little she quickly added, "Not in a bad way of course! No, never. I actually think it's really sweet. I think it's sweet you both remembered each other all these years. Just, I guess it reminds me a little bit about something I'm reading online, except unlike them you two actually remember everything." Oddly enough, the brunette seemed a little frustrated at that fact as she stared at her laptop. Anna looked confused, but before she could ask, Rapunzel continued, "I am happy for you two though. It's great you two met each other again."

Anna smiled. She then said to her roommate, "It's great you think that because, knowing me, you'll probably be seeing a lot of her over the year."

Rapunzel laughed. "Whatever you say. Anyway, I gotta head to class. See ya later," Rapunzel said before grabbing her bag and leaving for class. Anna finished her cereal, grabbed her bag, and headed out as well.

~~o~~

"So if you pay attention to page five of the syllabus…" a Dr. Whatever-his-name-was droned on in a monotone voice.

Anna was in her U.S. History course. A subject she never did enjoy. Add in the most boring professor Anna's ever heard, and what do we get? A really really bored Anna. In the span of the maybe 20 minutes in class, Anna had managed to doodle on every page of the syllabus and drowned out about every word her professor has spoken. She's heard maybe one out of every twenty words. Anna felt that, if she tried to pay attention, she would actually die of boredom, joining history as the first girl to ever actually die of boredom. And so, Anna began thinking of distractions. More drawing? Maybe… but her pencil broke. She's also already counted the number of people in her class who were sleeping. Maybe her phone.

 _Phone? Phone. Elsa!_

Maybe she could see if Elsa responded back earlier. Anna opened up her phone and saw a message from Elsa, which may have caused Anna to do a little dance in her seat. Maybe. She opened up the message and read it.

 _Hello Anna. Thank you for sending this. Good morning to you too. Of course I wouldn't mind you taking advantage of my offer to come visit. I wouldn't have it any other way._

Anna smiled looking at the text. _I should invite her to lunch sometim- Lunch. Kris and Sven. Maybe they'd want to meet her. Hm…_

Anna sent a text, asking Elsa if she'd like to join her and potentially her friends (who she has not contacted yet) for lunch, since they would probably like to meet her. Anna quickly got a response from Elsa.

 _Sure. I have two friends just dying to meet you as well, so I hope you don't mind them tagging along. Does 12:30 work for you?_

 _Yeah. 12:30 is tootally fine :). See you then?_

The response to this question was almost instant.

 _Of course you will._

Anna sighed happily and texted Kristoff and Sven, both of which could make it. With that, Anna just had to wait until lunch. Which was right after History… How much time was left? 45 minutes.

… _Oh boy._

~~o~~

At the Café, Anna seemed almost dead in a way. Her head was laying on her arms, and she was totally silent. When Kristoff and Sven saw her, they both asked her at the same time.

"Are... are you okay Anna?"

Anna lifts her head up to look at the twins. She looked sleepy. Really sleepy. Apparently her professor took five minutes longer than Anna was prepared for. And, sure it was only five minutes, but to Anna, it felt like it could have been hours.

She tiredly replied, "Yeah, just History. The professor's suuuper boring. His class felt like it took forever. And I wasn't even paying attention! I can't even begin to imagine what it would have been like to try and listen to the whole thing. And you two?"

Both twins looked at each other before, again, simultaneously saying, "You know, same old same old."

Anna just looked at the two. Their synchronization was just. Insane. Almost creepy, if Anna had to be completely honest. She's at least 79% sure they practice. Like to freak people out.

"Hey, I take offense to that; We don't practice" Kristoff said.

"Woops, sorry. You know me" Anna said, chuckling. Maybe it wasn't so accidental.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, right. So how're you and you're friend doing? You met her right?" Kristoff asked.

"Elsa? Right, we didn't really talk much last night. Lots of tears though. Happy ones of course. I mean Elsa is…" Anna started off saying. However, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a glimpse of platinum blonde. She turned her gaze towards that location and said, "right there." First she pointed in that direction, then she changed that hand into a wave and yelled, "HEY! ELSA OVER HERE!"

The blonde turned her attention towards that voice and gave Anna a shy smile and wave. She began to walk towards Anna, and when Elsa was about three-fourths of the way there, Anna closed the distance, bringing Elsa into a tight hug, which Elsa returned.

It wasn't for another five seconds did Anna notice the presence of other people. Two people exactly, who were following Elsa. Both had short brown hair. One was significantly shorter than the other, the shorter one being more lean while the taller was definitely more muscular. They were both wearing white Aren U T-shirts.

Noting the potential awkwardness of the situation, Anna (reluctantly) stopped hugging Elsa so she could introduce herself.

"Oh uh… hi! There. Uhm, My name is Anna, and you must be the friends I was told about?" Anna said.

The shorter one broke out into a huge grin and introduced himself, "Hi! I'm Olaf. And I like warm hugs." With that statement, Olaf opened his arm, looking like he was ready to give a wide hug. A little confused, Anna turned towards Elsa, who silently told her to just hug the boy, which Anna did. And. Wow. Okay. Anna has had some amazing hugs in the past. Hugs from all her friends back in high school, hugs from her two friends sitting on the table behind her, hugs from her parents. But, after this hug, Anna is convinced that Olaf gives probably the second best hugs in the world. Second to Elsa of course, because that's Elsa. The two separated.

"Wow, you weren't kidding when you said she was an amazing hugger," Olaf said, nonchalantly. At that, Anna felt her cheeks warm up a bit. Looking at Elsa, there may have been a slight pink coloring on her cheeks as well, though it was too light to see.

The taller one introduced himself as Marshall, Olaf's brother.

Which was. Wow. They looked so different.

"Yeah, and Olaf's older." Elsa said.

 _…_ _Wait, what?!_

Olaf started laughing, Marshall seemed amused, and Elsa chuckled behind her had. "Yeah we get that all the time," Olaf said. Anna blushed.

 _Did I just say that out loud?_

It was now Kristoff's turn to chime in. "Yup."

 _Oh my God, Anna please stop._

"But it's funny," Sven added.

 _I'm just gonna stop thinking._

Elsa was about to respond to that, but she decided Anna had enough from the others. Anna, completely, 100% determined to change the subject, hastily introduced her friends to Elsa.

"So yeah, Elsa, these two are Kristoff and Sven. They followed me from high school. And Kris and Sven, this is Elsa."

"Nice to meet you two, Kristoff, Sven." Elsa politely said.

"Likewise" both Kristoff and Sven at the same time, with the same exact tone of voice.

"Yeah, that happens all the time," Anna felt the need to add. "They're twins. Fraternal twins."

"So Elsa, we've heard so much about you from Anna," Kristoff said.

"Anna, same thing from Elsa," Olaf said. "All good things. All good things."

"Yeah same. Some days back home, it's almost like she couldn't stop talking about you," Sven felt the need to add.

On that note, Anna… again trying to change the subject, a little embarrassed about her ramblings back home, told Elsa, Olaf, and Marshall to join them at the table, where they all ate their lunch. The boys bonded, talking about sports, food, and just a myriad of topics. Anna and Elsa were just taking everything in. There might have been some tension between the two, making things a little awkward, neither of them knowing exactly what to talk to each other about. Both girls snapped out of their thoughts when Kristoff asked Elsa a question.

"So Elsa, any stories of Anna when she was little?" Anna's eyes widened at that, turning towards Elsa.

 _No. No. No._

"Well, maybe if you tell me something from her high school," Elsa said with a smirk and a mischievous glint in her eyes.

 _No. No. No._

"Deal. I guess I could tell you about how we met" Kristoff said.

 _No. No. No._ "NO. NO. NO. NO. KRISTOFF YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED" Anna yelled.

Olaf, laughed. "That's okay Anna. We can tell you stories about Elsa's first few weeks of college." Elsa's eyes widened. "And you can tell us stories from times when Elsa was a kid." Elsa's eyes widened even more. She turned towards Anna, and shook her head, pleadingly.

Anna laughed. "How about just, no embarrassing stories. Yet at least."

Elsa agreed, though Kristoff and Sven seemed a little disappointed. This talk about stories reminded Anna of something.

"Hey Elsa?" Anna said. Elsa turned towards Anna, a questioning look on her face. "Do you mind if I come over tonight? So we can catch up?"

Elsa smiled. "Of course."


	7. Chapter 7: Questions, racing, and sauce

Anna stood outside of room 264. Elsa's room. Anna's still completely shocked that they ended up next door neighbors. Again. She sighed at the thought and knocked her classic, rhythmic knock.

 ** _Knock Knock Kno-Knock Knock_**

At the sound of Anna's knock, Elsa placed the book she was reading onto the table and walked towards the door. She opened it and smiled, seeing Anna standing on the other side. She invited her in.

"Please, make yourself comfortable. Sit wherever you want. Also, do you want a drink? Water? Orange Juice? Chocolate milk?" Elsa asked.

Anna did not really hear the question. She was too busy looking around Elsa's room, taking in all of pictures that were hung everywhere. Pictures of a younger Elsa in various places. One picture showed a pre-teen Elsa ice skating on a frozen lake. Another was from Elsa's graduation. There was another that looked like it was taken when she was in middle school, holding a trophy for what appeared to be a math competition. The one she noticed the most was that of her and Elsa sitting on a couch, sleeping next to each other.

 _I remember that. That was whe-_

"Chocolate milk?" she heard Elsa say again.

"I'm sorry, can you repeat that? I didn't hear you."

"Want a drink? I've got water, orange juice, and chocolate milk." Elsa repeated.

"Chocolate!... please" Anna said, quickly. Elsa smiled at that, happy some things never change.

"Okay here you go." Elsa said, while giving Anna the drink... which was finished in maybe five seconds. Ten seconds tops.

"Okay so, I think we should just spend time… right now, to catch up with each other. Since it's been ten years, and so much has probably changed. You've probably done so much over the past ten years, and I want to know everything." Anna said.

Elsa smiled. "Of course, I'd like to know about you the past ten years also. Where should we start?"

Anna thought for a second. "How about, we just ask each other questions, taking turns. That way we'll know what to tell each other."

Elsa nodded.

"You can go first."

"You should start"

… Oh... woops.

There was an awkward silence between the two immediately following this. Anna, a bit more accustomed to these, however, recovered more quickly and began to talk.

"Ok, I think I'll ask first." Elsa agreed, appearing relieved. "So I think I'll start simple. What places have you gone to during the past ten years? Looking around the room, you look like you've done a lot of travelling."

Elsa thought for a second. Anna was right; she has done a bit of travelling. "Ok… so after we left Delle City, we moved to New York, which was where my dad got relocated to. Often during winter, we'd drive to a more rural area where I'd play around in the snow. But as you can see in that picture over there," Elsa points to the ice skating one, "I spent more time on the ice then on snow. Then we essentially moved along the East Coast, eventually ending in Florida, where I finished high school at Corona High. Over summers, my family often took trips to amusement parks, like Disney Land, Disney World, Universal Studios, and Sea World."

Anna sat there, thinking of the places, mainly parks, Elsa's been to. _Wow, I wanna visit those sometime._

"I wouldn't mind taking you. It'd be fun." Elsa said, answering Anna's unintentionally voiced thoughts.

"Oh. I have to stop thinking out loud."

"You don't really have to. That's one of the things I love about you: your ability to say what you mean and feel," Elsa said in response. Anna looked down bashfully hearing this. "Well, I guess it's my turn to ask a question… I think I'll start easy. Has your taste in food changed?"

Anna thought for a second before shaking her head. "I don't think so. No real changes. I still absolutely hate broccoli. They taste bad. And it's like eating a tiny green tree. Why would you do that?!"

Elsa chuckled quietly. With that, Anna asked her question, "So what's your favorite food? I bet it's stil-"

"Chocolate."

Elsa's quick reply caused Anna to giggle. Elsa shyly turned away... but hey. It was true. Elsa couldn't deny that one bit. Both girls began to ask the other more simple questions which could be answered in one or two words. They were basic things, like favorite colors (Elsa's blue, Anna's green), hobbies (Anna could knit... something Elsa didn't believe, Elsa liked to sing), favorite season (still winter), respective majors, and favorite actor/actress (Anna's was Kristen Bell, Elsa's Idina Menzel). This streak of single word answers ended when Anna eventually asked about Olaf and Marshall.

"So, how'd you meet Olaf and Marshall?"

Elsa thought for a moment before answering. "Ah okay so, I actually met Olaf on the first day of classes three years ago. He was in my English Literature class. He seemed to be really interested in being friends with me, asking me several questions, trying to start conversation. After about a week, I decided to give him better answers than the simple "yes" or "no" answers I'd been giving him. We start talking more afterwards, and the rest was history. Olaf introduced me to his brother the next year. He seems intimidating, but he's really a big softie at heart. Sometimes we call him Marshmallow."

"Marshmallow? Seriously?" Anna asked, disbelief evident in her tone.

Elsa smiled, amused by that response. "Yeah, seriously. He's one of the kindest people I know. The nickname annoys him sometimes, so we really only call him that when we're teasing. Though sometimes we can tell he enjoys the name. Now for my question." With that, Anna nodded. Anna noticed Elsa looked a little bit more apprehensive with this question then she had been with the others. "You and your friend Kristoff seemed very… close. Are you two dating?"

Anna just laughed at how nervous Elsa appeared asking this question. She's gotten that so many times, it really doesn't faze her anymore. Especially because...

"We did once. Back in, like, Junior Year. Everyone kept on telling us we were so perfect for each other. And we tried it. It was nice, I will admit. Something just didn't feel right though. Not that Kristoff was a bad person; no he was amazing. Very gentleman-y. It just wasn't right; he felt it too. There was like, a lack of spark between us, so we just stopped. Decided we were better as friends."

Hearing that, Elsa seemed to relax a little, something that went unnoticed by Anna. "Okay then, sorry for assuming." Elsa said.

"That's fine, I get it all the time. It's your turn to spill though; what kind of people did a Miss Elsa Wolfheart date in the past?" Anna said.

Elsa's eyes widened a little, apparently not expecting the question. Elsa looked around the room, probably trying to figure out how to answer. She breathed in deeply before answering. "I'm not very experienced when it comes to dating. I feel like I'd only be comfortable dating someone after knowing them for a while, and thus I have only dated maybe two people. One was a person named Jack. He was really nice and was amazing with kids. That was one of the things I liked about him. Unfortunately, things just didn't feel right, and we broke up. The other person I dated was a girl named Belle. She was… amazing really. Smart, kind, well-read, poised, but still enjoyed having a bit of fun every now and then. Though, that also didn't really work out; it kind of felt like we each wanted to go a different path, so we broke up. We still keep in touch though; last I heard, she was dating someone named Adam in France." Anna nodded in response. "So, what about your dating life?"

… Oh. Well. That's. Anna didn't even think that her question may have led Elsa to ask this question. Her eyes widened, similar to Elsa's. There was a distinct difference between the two, however. While Elsa's eyes only reflected surprise, Anna's seemed to reflect a number of different emotions. Shock. Sadness, and… Anger? Elsa wasn't sure. She was, however, afraid she may have touched a subject she probably should have avoided. She did try to take it back, but Anna snapped out of it quick enough to reassure Elsa it was fine.

"No, you don't need to worry. Just, bad memories is all," Anna said. "You know Kristoff? Yeah, he was the second person I had ever dated seriously. I've gone out on dates with other people before, though usually with the intention of hanging out and getting to know the other person. The first person though," Anna said, cringing, "was someone named Hans Westerguard."

Remembering this person was always unpleasant. Very unpleasant. In fact, Unpleasant actually makes him sound more pleasant than he actually was in comparison. Just thinking of his stupid face and sideburns made Anna really want to just pu-

"Anna," Elsa said, noting Anna's facial expressions, "you really don't have to if you're not comfortable…"

"No, no it's fine. I wanna tell you anyway. Just give me a moment to think." After about a minute, Anna began to recount the story to Elsa.

 _It was orientation day for Delle City High School. The man in charge of Anna's section was a person named Hans. He was the star of the school's footbal team. After orientation, Anna never really saw him again, so she forgot about him. A few months later, Hans appeared out of nowhere and asked Anna out. And well, Anna was a freshmen. This was a senior. And not just any senior, the star of the school's football team. So of course she said yes. And Hans seemed very nice and sweet; Anna fell really fast. A few weeks later though, just as suddenly as he had appeared, he dumped Anna, leaving her completely heartbroken. About a week later Hans had already started dating another person, Jasmine, a girl in Anna's homeroom. Through Kristoff and Sven, who were both also on the football team, Anna learned Hans had used her to get to Jasmine, someone who was seemingly unimpressed by Hans earlier. This fact hurt Anna even more. However, when she learned Hans was only using Jasmine to get to her father, who was a college recruiter, she was furious. She confronted Hans in the gym, but he was unapologetic. He seemed to not only feel no guilt, but he also seemed to be proud of his actions. With that knowledge, Anna's vision turned red. Next thing she knew, Hans was on the ground, and her arm was extended, fist clenched. It took Anna about five seconds to realize A) She had just punched Hans and B) Hans was on the ground, curled in pain, gripping his nose. There is a pretty good chance it might be broken. Anna had never been in the situation before, and while absolutely livid at the attitude and actions of this senior, she didn't really want to inflict… actual physical harm. Having never been in this situation, and having her vision turn a little less red, Anna suddenly contemplated what she had just done and panicked. She didn't know what she should do. So, she did the first thing that came to her mind. Contact a teacher. Which. Okay, may not have been the best plan after she punched one of the more well-known students on campus. Which led to her… awkwardly explaining to the principal why she had done what she did to Hans. Luckily (frustrating, yes. But luckily all the same), Hans' nose wasn't actually broken, and Anna got out with a week's suspension, rather than the usual, longer, punishment (because apparently the principal was also sick of Hans' attitude at this point)._

… Anna finished her story with a breath.

"Wow, this Hans guy sounds terrible. What happened after?" Elsa asked, trying to take in that whole story.

Anna laughed silently. "Well news got around about what I did, including the whole 'call the teacher after punching a student' thing, so that was… interesting. Kris apparently found that super amusing when I came back a week later. Hans, rightfully, lost his scholarship after further investigation of character due to the incident. Which is great, since it all just blew up in his face."

With that, the two, again sat in silence, as Anna contemplated about her next question. She searched around the room, looking for something in particular, eventually landing on the picture of Elsa's graduation. _Oh right._ "So Elsa, how're your parents doing?" Anna began. "I haven't heard from the-"

Anna stopped the moment she brought her attention back to Elsa's face. She immediately regretted her question the moment she saw the emotions in Elsa's widened eyes. Her brow was furrowed. Anna could see sadness. And. Anna was worried. Elsa seemed uncomfortable. And sad. She didn't want her to be sad.

On the other hand, Elsa was... not expecting that question. At all.

 _Did… Did no one tell her? Did her parents not know? Does Anna not…?_

Elsa appeared so worried that Anna attempted to take it back. She wasn't sure whether or not Elsa's parents did something to her (they seemed so nice when Anna was little), but she could tell when something was wrong.

Anna quickly said, "Elsa, you don't have to answer it if you don't want to. I was just curious… is all. But seriously; you don't need to…"

Elsa heard this and snapped out of whatever was going on in her mind. She focused solely on the girl sitting in front of her. She saw her friend's eyebrows furrowed. Her eyes were filled with concern, and she could see Anna's hand moving, almost as if she was trying to reach out to Elsa.

And. She saw. Anna was worried about her. Anna didn't…

"Anna, do you… Do you not know?" Elsa asked, cautiously.

 _Oh god what_ "What do you mean?" Anna asked, cringing a bit.

"Anna… m-my parents have been… for the last two y-years" Elsa began saying, not really sure how to tell her friend. Should she say it directly? Or should she use a euphemism? Why was it slowly becoming harder to talk? And would she actually need to keep going, or would Anna pick up everything she needed to? Elsa earnestly hoped for the latter.

Luckily… for Elsa, she didn't need to explain much further. Anna had understood what Elsa was trying to say. However, looking at her friend's face, Elsa sort of wished Anna had not understood the answer. Elsa could tell the moment Anna had figured out the message. She saw Anna's eyes begin to water. Her shoulders began to quiver and shake. And just.

Elsa couldn't handle the sight anymore. She quickly got off her chair and walked towards her friend, wrapping her in a tight hug. She could hear silent "stupid"s being muttered by her friend.

"Anna… what's wrong?" Elsa asked, worriedly.

Upon realizing the news, Anna was devastated. She felt sadness, regret, frustration, and many more emotions. Most prominent, however, was anger towards herself. Why did she ask that? Why did she have to ask that? Things were going relatively well. Things weren't bad. Sure, it felt awkward, but Anna was enjoying learning about the ways Elsa has changed, and judging from what she could see, Elsa was also enjoying this. But of course she had to ruin it. Did she have any way of knowing? Not really. But that didn't matter to Anna, because all that mattered to her was the fact that she didn't.

"Nothing. Everything. Just. God, I'm so sorry Elsa, I should have known," Anna dejectedly said.

"But Anna, it's not your fault. You couldn't have…" Elsa said, trying to comfort Anna.

"It is," Anna said, through tears. "I should have. God, I'm so stupid. They were your parents and here you are comforting me. I should be comforting you. But just. I. I'm so sorry Elsa."

"Shh It's okay Anna," Elsa said, still trying to relax Anna. Anna, however, still seemed to be beating herself up over something she couldn't have known about. Elsa didn't want to see her like this. So she did what she always did when they were children. Whenever Anna accidentally hurt herself, or started crying, or was sad or sick.

Elsa began singing to Anna. She decided to sing a song they both sang together fondly as children: Hakuna Matata. She even did the voices for Timon and Pumba. She kept singing different songs, ranging from serious to silly, until finally, Anna cracked a smile.

"Ah there it is," Elsa said, smiling back.

Sniffing, and hiding a chuckle, Anna said, "Thanks Elsa."

"No problem... though I think that's enough questions. For now of course, we can pick them up later," Elsa said. "Now how about we play some games?"

Anna looked at Elsa then towards the Wii U sitting a few feet from her. After wiping her eyes, Anna agreed. She always wanted to play with a Wii U anyways. They both took a seat around the table, and Elsa gave Anna one of the controllers. Elsa turned on the system and chose Mario Kart. At first, Anna didn't really seem that eager to play, but that changed when she saw how focused Elsa looked. And how much fun Elsa looked like she was having. The way Elsa bit her lip in concentration whenever she was dodging projectiles coming her way. How adorable Elsa looked when she pouted after being hit, as well as the little smile she has when she wins. _I never realized just how beautiful Elsa's gotten these past ten years._

 _…_

 _Wait, What? Where'd that come from? What was I doing? Oh right the game._

And slowly Anna started playing more and more seriously. While playing, she learned four things. One: This game looked pretty. Two: Elsa's good at playing this game. Like really good. Like Anna couldn't catch up ever good. Three: The computer players cheat. They just do. There's no explanation to the amount of things that hit her otherwise. And four: Elsa never lets go of first place without a very good reason. Usually involving lesson number three.

Anna got ahead of Elsa once. Only once. And in that then-glorious moment, Anna immediately heard the warnings of a blue shell, which hit her. Followed by the sound of a red shell (which Elsa somehow dodged... like how?!). Which also hit Anna. Then she got struck by lightning, stopping her in her tracks, right in front of the finish line. And to finish this endless barrage of power-ups, Anna finally got his by someone with the star power-up, knocking her down more. And she wasn't passed by anyone. She was passed by Elsa, who was giving her the most teasing grin.

 _Oh it is so on._

And so they played four more games. All of which Elsa had destroyed Anna. Anna was ready to play a fifth game when suddenly a faint grumble could be heard. From Anna's stomach.

Elsa smirked a little before asking, "Hungry?"

Anna's cheeks reddened. She looked away before bashfully replying, "…Yes."

Elsa looked at the clock and saw that it was getting close to dinner. She turned back towards Anna and asked, "Do you want to stay for dinner? I'm making an old favorite."

Anna nodded. She knew that she was definitely getting hungry. Plus Elsa was making it. She loved the food at the Café, no doubt but. This is food Elsa's making. It must be at least 143 times better. Because Elsa is making it.

Elsa giggled before saying, "Thank you, but I really hope you don't overestimate my cooking."

Anna just blushed at this, embarrassed about accidentally saying her thoughts. Again. "Sorry."

"Don't be. You find it easy to say what's on your mind. Like I said before, it's one of the things I love about you." Elsa responded quickly, before walking to the kitchen to prepare some food. Anna's gaze followed her friend, curious to see what she was cooking. However, Elsa seemed to be blocking Anna's vision of the food being prepared. Seeing as she wouldn't be coming up with any answers, Anna started playing again. She heard the click of a stove being turned on. Eventually, the smell of… whatever was cooking began to fill the air. It seemed familiar, almost nostalgic really, but Anna couldn't quite identify the smell though. Whatever it was, it smelled absolutely delicious.

After being (unjustly) cheated out of first place by (another) barrage of items, which caused her to be passed by Mario, Anna threw her controller onto the couch and suddenly yelled, "DARN IT. I WAS RIGHT THERE. THE FINISH LINE WAS RIGHT THERE. Stupid Italian plumber." _Italian?_ Suddenly it clicked, and she turned attention right back at the blonde, who was watching her amusedly. "Oh my god. Elsa. Elsa. Please. Are you… cooking what I think you're cooking?" Anna asked.

"That depends, what do you think I'm cooking?"

Anna, practically salivating at the memories, quickly replied "Spaghetti. That smell. It's spaghetti. I know that smell. Please tell me you're cooking what I think you're cooking. Pleeeease."

Elsa chuckled to herself before saying "You are indeed correct. Now please take a seat at the table. I'll go get your food ready."

Anna did as she was told and walked to the table. She was so excited for this. She was practically jumping in her seat. Back ten years ago, that spaghetti had always been her favorite food to eat at Elsa's. It was always so perfect. Looking at the plate Elsa had just put in front of her, it looked even more amazing than she remembered. Her first bite also tasted better than anything she remembered. Maybe it's because Elsa had cooked it herself. Maybe it's because she hadn't had it in forever… but it probably tasted better than any spaghetti she'd ever had.

Elsa had a similar feeling. She'd made this dish so many times in the past, due to the ease of preparation. However this was definitely the best she's ever made it. Maybe it's because Anna was here? Elsa wasn't sure. But she did know it definitely tasted amazing.

Anna quickly finished her food, something Elsa expected. She prepared more servings of spaghetti, which Anna happily accepted and ate more. When they were both done, they both leaned back into their chairs. Both sitting, silently. Content.

The silence was broken, by a musical giggle. Coming from the blonde. Who had just taken a look at her best friend. Anna noticed and looked at Elsa, confusedly. Elsa started laughing harder. When Anna looked even more confused, Elsa pointed to her lips and face, whilst laughing. Anna felt her face and noticed that there was spaghetti sauce. Everywhere. Anna pouted before suddenly standing up. She walked towards Elsa, who was still laughing.

The laughter stopped when Elsa felt something distinctly cold touch her face. It was Anna's finger, with sauce on it. Anna had just put some of the spaghetti sauce on Elsa's face. Elsa looked at Anna, who was sticking a tongue out at Elsa. In response, Elsa threw a piece of meat at Anna's forehead. Both girls looked at each other, both girls thinking one thing.

 _Bring it on._

With that, both girls quickly began playing around to see who could sauce the other girl's face more.

And maybe this was childish. Maybe they could have spent more time tonight learning about the other. Maybe they could have done something more productive than having a small food fight in Elsa's dorm. However, they have all year to learn about each other. All year to play and mess around. And they had all year to be more serious. Right now, none of that mattered.

Right now, at this moment, only two things mattered to the two girls. One: They had found the other. Two: They needed more sauce.

* * *

 **A/N: Hi anyone still reading this! From here, this story will be getting a lot more episodic. Almost one-shotty, but vaguely related to each other. Mainly following the two girls (and probably the other characters) and their lives. Future chapters also may take different POVs (i.e. one might be done through Anna's, one through Elsa's etc. rather than the third person it's been). I'd also like to thank the people who are following this, as well as those who are taking their time to read it! It is much appreciated.**


	8. Chapter 8: Midterms are coming!

It's been about a month and a half since the beginning of the semester. Despite both girls getting more and more busy, they often spent time with one another. Anna still went over to Elsa's almost every day, and Elsa occasionally dropped by Anna's place. Anna came over so often, Elsa eventually gave Anna her own key to room 264. Which. Anna doesn't even understand. Actually no one really understands. It's a school dorm; how did Elsa even…

Disregarding that, Anna and Elsa had even more time to catch up with one another (… as well as play around. There wouldn't be one day where the two girls didn't have fun playing with the other, not if Anna could help it). Anna learned Elsa had played piano throughout high school and still occasionally played, though her busy schedule usually prevents her from playing. Anna made a simple in the back of her mind to convince Elsa to play her a song sometime. Anna also learned Elsa was in year four of a six year architecture program, despite only being a Junior in terms of years, something that Elsa managed to do by spending all breaks at school, taking summer classes. She also learned a bit about Elsa back in high school. She didn't talk much with the other classes. The only exception was her school's theater/drama club, who usually performs for the school, as well as other audiences. When Anna heard this, she insisted on watching a video of one of Elsa's plays, to which Elsa adamantly refused. She seemed to be rather shy. Anna thought this was a perfect time to test if the second of Elsa's weaknesses still worked. The pout.

 _"Anna, no. I'm not showing you it." Elsa said. She appeared to be completely adamant about this. In response, Anna made the biggest pout and looked at Elsa. Elsa then made the mistake of taking a look at her friend's face. The moment she did, her eyes widened and she immediately shut her eyes. Her face, though, started looking more and more unsure and her brow furrowed._

 _"That is so not fair. Put it away Anna. Annaaaa." Elsa whined, before taking one more peek, only to see the look still there. She shut her eyes again, looking even more and more conflicted. Eventually, she made an exasperated sigh and said, "Fine, Fine. I'll call my aunt to mail me the video. Now please stop pouting. Ugh, honestly, with that face, you could probably get away with murder."_

Anna, for some reason, felt a strange pride over this. She had power (over Elsa). A power she vowed she would only use for good. Never for evil. Well, maybe a little evil. Heck, she had managed to use it to convince Elsa to contact her aunt to send the video of her school's adaptation of the play _Wicked_.

Elsa also learned more about Anna over the month and a half. Some things she learned from Anna herself. Others… she learned from Kristoff and Sven. Elsa learned about Anna's involvement in soccer and martial arts (both of which Elsa had severe doubts about, remembering how clumsy Anna could be. Anna was determined to show Elsa at some point). She also learned of Anna's never ending enjoyment for all things Pokémon. What Anna enjoyed talking about the most, as far as high school was concerned, was her involvement in the art club, something Elsa seemed to enjoy hearing about as well. Anna showed Elsa various pieces of art she's made over the years, all of which Elsa enjoyed. Her favorite piece was one Anna made with the prompt "Childhood". It was a drawing of, what could only be described as a winter wonderland. There was snow, lights, trees, and little kids everywhere. However, everything was left black and white except for two little kids building a snowman. A little Anna and a little Elsa. Elsa asked if she could see it in person, and Anna figured it wouldn't hurt to ask the school if she could have it.

One random day, Kristoff decided to show Elsa our sophomore yearbook. When Anna asked why sophomore year, he refused to tell her, making her think it had something to do with her. When Anna saw her picture in the yearbook, she groaned inwardly, realizing why Kristoff chose that specific one.

 _"So here's me, and here's Sven, and here's Anna" Kristoff said to Elsa._

 _"Kris, why did you even choose this particular ye- oh my god," Anna said, putting her face in her hands._

 _"Huh Anna, why are you- huh. Anna, what's this?" Elsa asked. Anna's assuming Elsa's referring to Anna's hair. More specifically…_

 _"It's a blonde streak. She was going through some sort of punk music phase. What did you say about it Anna," Kristoff said, hiding a chuckle."Something about a song?"_

 _"… It was after I heard the song Dreamt I was Kissed by a band called A Troll" Anna said, looking away. Such an embarrassing song name. She could feel the heat creeping into her cheeks as they talked._

 _"… Hm looking at it now, though. I think there might have been…" Anna could hear his tone of voice. It was suggesting… something. She turned her eyes towards him, and she could see his eyes were neither looking at her nor the book. No they were looking at… looking at… Oh. Oh no, they're looking at Elsa's hair, "other reasons."_

 _Anna saw Elsa's brow furrow in confusion. Anna felt her own eyes widen at the implication, and she began to glare at Kristoff. She tried to send him a silent plea not to say anymore._

 _He seemed to have gotten the message, as he finished off his statement with, "Oh well. Only a guess though, only Anna knows the full reason. Her parents though were super shocked. Not cause they were against it. More like, she came home one random day after high school with that blonde streak. Parents weren't expecting it, I think she caused her mom to drop her cooking on the floor." Kristoff said with amusement._

 _"Ugh Kristoff, please." Anna said, almost completely sure her face was red. When she looked towards Elsa though, Elsa seemed rather focused on a picture._

 _When she noticed Anna sending her a quizzical look, she looked up and randomly said, "I like it. It looks nice"_

 _At that point, if Anna wasn't sure she was blushing before, she was completely sure she was blushing now. She turned away, not really able to look at anyone at the moment… Though Anna has since entertained the idea of dying her hair again…_

Elsa and her friends, Olaf and Marshall, have been spending most of their lunches with Anna, Kristoff, and Sven over the past month and a half. Anna and Elsa have since gone passed the whole awkward silences they originally had. It was almost as if no time had passed between them. Sometimes Rapunzel and her boyfriend, Flynn Ryder (which he calls himself, though his actual name is Eugene Fitzherbert… Anna thinks both names are kind of silly so she calls him Eugene) would join them for lunch. Lunches usually involve some sort of story being told, either by Eugene (whose stories were obviously exaggerated) or Olaf (whose stories were funny).

The past month had been pretty relaxing for Anna. No work had really piled up, and she was always ahead of schedule.

…

The same can't be said for right now though. Midterms start on Monday. It is currently Saturday. And Anna had just started studying today. To her credit, she's been studying almost nonstop since she woke up at around 9 A.M. It is currently 3 P.M., and Anna is lying down on her bed, books on various topics surrounding her.

 _I. Can't. Keep. Going. I have been studying for hours. HOURS. I need a break like now. Like right now… hm I wonder how Elsa's doing… Elsa!_

With that thought, Anna took her arm off her forehead, got out of bed, and went to check up on how her friend is doing. Standing outside of room 264, Anna knocks her signature knock.

 ** _-Knock Knock Kno-Knock Knock-_**

Anna stood outside for around 30 seconds, and yet no answer was given. She tried it again, slightly louder this time, only to be met with the same silence. Anna sighed. _She's probably not in her dorm right now._ With that thought, Anna reached into her pocket, taking out her own key to Elsa's room.

 _Welp, may as well try this out._

With that thought, Anna inserted the key into the dorm and turned it. There was a click sound, indicating it worked (which, okay, Anna was surprised she actually has a key to someone else's dorm). Anna sent a quick message to Elsa's phone, saying she'd be hanging out in her room. However, entering the room, she was met with a view she didn't expect.

There were books opened up and scattered all over the living room. Sitting at the table in the living room, Anna could see Elsa facing away from her. From her view, Elsa's hair appeared to be messy. A lot messier than she's come to expect Elsa's hair during the day (though definitely not as bad as what either of them usually wake up with). Elsa appeared to be hunched up, looking down, probably studying. Anna could see Elsa's hands holding her head. Anna carefully walked closer. At closer inspection, Elsa seemed to be wearing earphones, and her hands appeared to, not only be holding her head, but gripping it. Tightly. And well, judging by the tight grip on her head, the messed up hair, and the fact she still somehow hasn't noticed Anna was literally right next to her, Elsa was stressed. Really stressed. Something that confused Anna.

Anna knows Elsa has been studying all week. Anna's seen Elsa focusing on whatever subjects she had. So Anna knows Elsa should be ready. Or at least shouldn't be studying or stressing out as much as she currently is.

Anna sighed. _Oh Elsa, always so serious. Some things definitely never change._ _I wonder if there's any way I can calm her down. Oh! I have an idea_

With that thought, Anna left Elsa's room and walked back to hers. She went into her room and grabbed her bag, books, and magenta blanket. When she came back in, Elsa was… still in the same position. Completely focused, eyebrows furrowed together. Anna dropped her bag by Elsa's shelf and wrapped her arms and front part of her body in her fluffy blanket. She slowly approached Elsa and wrapped her in her blanket, bringing her into a hug. At first, Anna felt Elsa jump and stiffen up. After looking up and learning it was Anna, Elsa relaxed, leaning into the hug and grabbing hold of one of Anna's arms.

"Hey Anna, what're you doing here?" Elsa said, with a smile. However, the slight rasp in her voice, along with all the other signs betrays her exhaustion.

Anna sighed. "Weeeell, at first I came here meaning to take a break, but then I saw you all stressed out. So I decided to take my things," Anna pointed towards her bag, "bring them here, and then make you take a break with me!"

Elsa's eyes widened, and she suddenly looked more worried. "Anna, I-I can't. Tests start Monday" Elsa gestures to all the books around her.

Anna looked around at all the books scattered around her. She noticed they all looked like books Elsa had been reading over the week. In addition, the books seemed to look less scattered than they originally seemed. Oddly enough, they seemed to be organized based on subject.

Anna rolled her eyes. _Because somehow organized mess is possible._

"I separate them so I don't get confused when I get back to each subject" Elsa said, matter-of-factly.

Anna grunts. "Still gotta work on that. Anyway, Elsa, how long have you been studying?"

"… Since 8 a.m."

 _Eight…. Eigh.. "_ EIGHT?! Elsa it's like three right now. Have you taken a break at all?!"

"…No…"

"Okay, Elsa. You're taking a break with me right now." Anna let go of the hug, lifted Elsa off her seat, and pushed her towards the couch. "You need a break right now. Now here," Anna tossed something she grabbed from her bag to Elsa, "eat this chocolate."

"B-but Anna. Tests.."

"It'll only be for an hour, I promise. Besides, you've been studying since eight. Eight! And you've been studying all week, those same books too. I hadn't even started before today, and I've only been studying since nine. I'm sure you can afford to sit down and race your bestest friend in the whole world." Anna turned on the Wii U and the TV. She then selected Mario Kart and passed Elsa a controller. "Let's play."

At first, Elsa didn't seem to be that interested. However, this all changed when she was hit by a blue shell. And a red shell. And lightning. And a green shell (which may or may not have been thrown by Anna; she'd never tell). Which led to Anna's first win against Elsa in Mario Kart. Anna smiled at Elsa in mock-triumph. Elsa looked at Anna with wide-eyes. Which Anna then noticed changed quickly, the competitive glint that was present the first time they played returning to Elsa's eyes. On the second race, however, Anna seemed to be taking first the entire race, which was strange considering Elsa's earlier change in disposition. As she was about to win, however, she was suddenly hit by a green shell. Elsa then quickly passed her and stole first place. Anna looked at Elsa, the earlier situation reversed, Elsa smiling at Anna mischievously.

 _Oh you wanna play it like that?_

For the rest of the hour, Anna and Elsa proceeded to just attack each other with items, completely ignoring the race. Red shells. Green shells. Stars. Lightning. Elsa began to start laughing and enjoying herself, the stress seeming to ebb away from her. And Anna smiled. Elsa's laugh was just like music to her own ears. Eventually the hour had passed, and both girls were in much better moods than they originally had been.

"Thank you Anna. I guess I really needed that," Elsa said, sending a grateful smile to her friend.

"No problemo Els!" Anna began to walk to her bag. "Now if you excuse me, I'm gonna study in here. I mean, if you don't mind. I probably should have asked you if you were okay with me studying here, now that I think about it. But like, I thought it'd be best, I could make sure you relax every once in a while, and you can make sure I'm actually studying, since it's like hard to study in my room. So uhm… yeah, I'll be studying here… if that's okay with you?" Anna could feel heat creeping on her cheeks in response to her recent ramble.

Elsa stared at Anna, trying not to giggle. She did have a smile on her face. She pretended to think, so as to tease Anna. Which Anna noticed.

"Elsaaaaaaa," Anna whined.

Elsa just laughed. "Yeah, yeah, you can stay."

"Yay!" Anna exclaimed. She grabbed one of her books and lied down on Elsa's couch. She wrapped herself in her blanket and began to study. Elsa took a seat on the floor in front of said couch, back to the couch. She rested the back of her head on the space next to Anna and began studying herself.

"It's okay for me to be here right Els?"

Elsa just nodded, not taking her eyes off her book. And that's how the two of them studied for midterms. Together. Anna making sure Elsa took breaks, and Elsa making sure Anna actually studied.

~~o~~

After the week passed, both girls were satisfied with the completion of their tests. The two of them celebrated in Elsa's dorm, spending the night playing video games, as well as card games. Olaf, Marshall, Kristoff, Sven, Rapunzel, and Flynn joined them and enjoyed the end of their midterms (everyone also seemingly satisfied with the end of midterms), playing until they all inevitably fell asleep. All of them fell asleep on Elsa's floor; the two exceptions being Anna and Elsa, who have taken the same position on the couch as they did in the picture in Elsa's room: sitting next to each other on the couch, head's resting on the other person.


	9. Chapter 9: Let's go to the mall! Today

"So, have you guys been to the mega-mall yet?" Olaf said before taking a bite of his ice cream.

Olaf, Marshall, Rapunzel, Eugene (as everyone in the group have started calling him… much to his annoyance), Kristoff, Sven, Anna, and Elsa were sitting around a round table in the café, as they have the past month. The eight of them were having dinner the night before their school's fall holiday, which is sort of like a day off right after midterms (the results of which everyone was satisfied with). Anna and Elsa both managed to ace their exams, surprising both of them (though Anna totally expected Elsa to ace them. She'd been working too hard for any other result).

Anna was the first one to answer. "Mega-mall?" She, as well as Kris, Sven, and Rapunzel (basically all the Freshmen), had confused faces. "I don't think we've really heard about it." All the freshmen, again, nodded in agreement.

It was the upper-classmen's turn to be surprised. "You guys haven't been there yet?" Eugene asked.

"Nope. Why? Do we need to?" Rapunzel asked.

"Well… yeah. That place literally has everything." Eugene said.

"I say," Olaf started after taking another bite of ice cream, "we all go there tomorrow. We'll all ride in Marsh's truck. You guys really don't know what you're missing."

"How is it different from every other mall?" Kristoff asked.

"You'll see when we get there." Marshall said.

"Alright then, we'll meet tomorrow morning at around 8:30 a.m." Olaf said.

"Why so early?" It was Sven's turn to ask.

"Well, it's a liiittle bit of a drive away. Plus, it's sort of a place we spend the whole day at when we go. Especially for her." Olaf said, pointing at Elsa.

Anna turned to look at Elsa, curious. Elsa appeared neutral, but Anna could tell otherwise. Looking at Elsa's eyes, as well as at her cheeks, Anna could tell Elsa was trying to fight back an excited smile.

"What does that mean?" Anna asked Elsa curiously.

Elsa turned to Anna. "You'll see."

"So 8:30 okay with everyone?" Olaf asked.

Everyone agreed, Anna a bit more enthusiastic and curious, looking at Elsa's (albeit somewhat hidden) reaction.

"Great! It'll be fun, I promise." Olaf said.

Everyone continued their lunch before going their separate ways. Anna and Elsa were walking ahead of Eugene and Rapunzel back to their dorm.

"So Elsa," Anna started after poking Elsa's arm, "what did Olaf mean by 'especially for her'?"

"Like I said. You'll see. Hopefully you enjoy it… but it's kind of something I always do there whenever we go. I usually stay there upwards of three hours."

"Three hours?!"

"Yes."

Now Anna was even more curious, but she'll have to wait for tomorrow to find out what both Olaf and Elsa were referring to.

~~o~~

 _10:30 a.m. the next day._

"OH THANK YOU SMOOTH NON-MOVING GROUND!" Anna jumped out of Marshall's van the moment it was parked.

"Oh please Anna, it wasn't that bad" Elsa said from behind her. "Besides, you were sleeping for like, half of it." Anna stuck her tongue out at Elsa in response.

Maybe Anna was overreacting. It was probably not as bad as she thought it was. The group met up at the Café at 8:30, where they walked over to Marshall's blue van, which had just enough space for all eight of them. The gang decided it would be best to separate Rapunzel and Eugene (much to their protests), mainly because no one wanted to be the person sitting next to the two of them. Olaf told them the ride would take about two hours… something Anna was not expecting. Anna wasn't very keen on spending extended periods of times in small spaces, unless she had something else to keep her busy. She had a lot of trouble keeping still whenever she was awake, and seeing how the van had only just enough space for all of them, Anna knew staying awake would be a bad idea. So she fell asleep pretty much at the start of the trip… at least until the half way point of the trip. Where the roads became pretty beat up. Which led to an extremely bumpy ride. Leading to Anna's rude awakening, scared and confused about why the ride suddenly became extremely rough.

Fortunately, Elsa was there to calm her down, holding one of Anna's arms in comfort. Though, when Anna took a look at Elsa's face, Elsa appeared worried. Not outwardly worried, but Anna could tell Elsa was feeling… something. Nervous. Anxious. Anna wasn't exactly sure what, but she knew she should do something. So she returned the comforting gesture, giving Elsa one of her patented Anna smiles, which was rewarded with a smile from Elsa. And thus the ride continued, with the roads somehow getting even more rough, whilst everyone else in the car singing whatever popped up on the radio.

So, it wasn't AS bad as Anna probably thought it was. The first half of the trip was probably a lot more smooth, but Anna was sure she wasn't looking forward to the trip back. Her butt was really sore, and she was just really glad to be out of the car.

"I really hope this mega-mall was worth all of that" Anna grunted. She then noticed that Kristoff, Sven, and Rapunzel were staring off into the direction behind her.

Kristoff was the first to give Anna a response. "Look here and see." When Anna did. Wow. Okay. The mall was huge. Like really huge. Ginormous even.

Olaf, Marshall, Eugene, and Elsa already went ahead of them. Noticing the others were not behind them, Elsa turned around, seeing them stare in awe. Elsa laughed. She remembered her first time seeing this "You all coming?" The freshmen nodded and followed their upperclassmen to the building. Which was… somehow bigger on the inside than it looked on the outside. The group walked around, pretty much window shopping because there was just way too many stores to look at. When Eugene said that this mall literally had everything, he wasn't kidding.

With Olaf leading, they eventually got to the first destination planned by him, the arcade. Which also seemed to have every arcade game ever created. From there, the group played several games, eventually gravitating towards what they were best at. Kristoff and Sven seemed be the best at playing racing games (Anna was surprised that Elsa couldn't beat them, mainly due to her experience with Mario Kart. Anna proceeded to tease her about it though, much to Elsa's dismay). Marshall seemed to be naturally amazing at the arcade basketball games. Olaf was pretty good at ski-ball. Anna and Elsa found they were both pretty good at DDR (the entire group surprised at Anna's oddly perfect coordination while playing). Oddly enough, Rapunzel seemed to be really really good at the rail shooters. No one really knew where Eugene went; Rapunzel had lost track of him, as she was seemingly engrossed in killing whatever zombie was attacking her on screen. When they did find him however, they were shocked to see him with an insane number of tickets. Turns out he was really good at those luck-based arcade games.

After the arcade, the group went to the food court to grab lunch. And. Okay. Anna expected the food court to be huge, just judging by the size of the mall they were in, sure. What she saw, though, was even grander than she imagined. Food from all around the world were stationed everywhere. So it was no surprise when Anna broke out in uncontainable joy when she saw the desserts there (mainly the chocolate… well everything). She was practically salivating looking at all the options, and she could see Elsa felt the same way. Unfortunately, they had to restrain themselves… because money. The group quickly finished their lunch (although figuring out what to eat prior was a different story). They all followed Olaf as they walked around the mall, moving towards… something. Anna wasn't sure, but she could tell Elsa was getting steadily more excited.

As they passed by more stores, Anna heard Rapunzel silently muttered something about having to come back again later. As they continued walking, Anna noticed it was slowly getting chillier. Suddenly, Anna felt a cold hand grab onto hers and saw the owner, Elsa, run past her, essentially dragging Anna along.

"Come on Anna!" Elsa said gleefully as she dragged Anna. Anna looked back and saw the others following after them. Anna swore she saw Olaf shaking his head, smiling to himself. Anna refocused her attention forward as they approached the door. The two rushed through the door revealing.

An ice rink. A really, really big ice rink. Which… okay explains the chill… and Elsa's excitement. Anna probably should've seen it coming. However, while Kristoff, Sven, and Rapunzel were looking at this ice rink in awe, Anna was a bit more nervous. Actually, a lot more nervous. Naturally, because they're at an ice skating rink, she would probably have to go skating. That wasn't the problem.

Well sort of. It's not the ice skating part she was worried about. She was sure that'd be fun… as long as she was on her feet. Anna was not completely oblivious about herself. She knew for a fact she could be clumsy. And while she never let that bother her, she wasn't sure how keen she was about putting herself in a situation where she'd likely trip… fall over… And maybe make a fool of herself. Maybe she'd somehow manage to break the thin layer of ic-

"Hey Anna, here," Elsa said, snapping Anna out of her active imagination. Elsa was holding out a pair of skates towards Anna, indicating they were hers. And well, the skates looked pretty (not at all what Anna had imagined coming from a public skating rink. The blades even had little snow patterns on them.)

"This, it all looks amazing but… I'm not sure it's a good idea for me to… like be on ice. Where the only thing holding me up are two thin metal blades. I don't skate believe me. One time I tried, and yeesh it was not pretty. At all. Fell down unbelievably quick, my family doesn't even understand how I managed to get injured so quickly but. I just. I don't skate" Anna quickly said.

"But Anna you'll be fine… I promise you won't fall…" Anna could hear Elsa's voice getting smaller, not at all like how she was earlier. The sound breaking her heart slowly.

"C'MON ANNA! JOIN US!" came a ton of voices from behind her. Anna saw that everyone had already gone and started already, making her even more conflicted. However, when she turned back to Elsa, she was met with… probably the one thing that could crumble any resolve she had. Ever.

Elsa. Her newly reunited best friend. Perfect and mature Elsa. Was pouting at her, bottom lip jutted out, eyes wide and pleading.

"Pleeeease Annaaaa" Elsa said. Almost begging really. Seemed like she really wanted Anna to join her… which made sense since they are best friends and all.

Anna quickly thought of the pros and cons of avoiding ice skating. Pros: she wouldn't trip. She wouldn't fall. She wouldn't make a fool of herself. Cons: Elsa's pouting. She would be sad. Elsa's pouting. Anna would be left out. Elsa's pouting. Did I mention Elsa's pouting? Because right now it's the only thing Anna can really focus on. It was so fatally cute, adorable, and heart wrenching all at the same time. If Elsa said Anna could probably get away with murder with her pout, Anna thought Elsa could probably get away with… the destruction of an entire nation with her pout. And just. It's right there looking at her. And…

"Ugh fine, I'll skate." Anna grabbed the skates and began to put them on. "If I fall though, I'm blaming you."

Elsa's pout quickly transformed into a face-splitting grin. "Don't worry you won't! I promise! Now Come on!" Elsa said giddily, going onto the ice and sliding away. Very gracefully Anna noted. Anna smiled at herself, believing completely she'd end up making a fool of herself. That she'd fall over herself quickly. But. Looking at her friends, this can't really be such a bad thing right?

"Okay. You've got this. You were born ready for this" Anna said to herself, taking one step onto the ice. She started by slowly moving across the ice, without moving her body. So far so good.

 _Maybe this isn't so bad._ "I got it. I got this"

When Anna consciously tried to skate however, she began to lose her balance. "Nope. Nope. Don't got it. DON'T GOT IT" Anna yelled, bracing herself for the inevitable fall. Which never happened. Anna noticed someone was grabbing hold of her hand, keeping her up, and bringing her along. When Anna looked up to see the owner of the hand, she was met with a bright, possibly teasing, smile.

"Told you. I promised you wouldn't fall."

"I almost did Els."

"But you didn't! Now let's go!" Elsa said as they continued to skate. Well more like while she continued to skate, dragging Anna along. Anna, who was holding onto Elsa for dear life, slowly began to notice she really didn't need to be trying at all… seeing how Elsa was somehow managing to hold her up while skating herself. Anna even began feeling refreshed by the wind blowing in her face and soothed by the strong grip currently holding her up. She noticed she didn't even really need to focus very much as long as she could manage to stay upright. So she took the time to relax and just take in everything going around her. She started taking note of all of her friends.

 _Wow, this isn't really that bad._

 _Olaf and Marsh aren't bad at all. And it looks like Eugene is skating circles around Punzie… who actually seems just a tad bit annoyed. Maybe?_

 _Woah, Kris and Sven sure got the hang of this qui- woops. Thought too soon. Hope Kris is okay. And the wall. Hope that's alright too._

Surprised by how well Elsa is managing to do majority of the work holding them up, Anna turned her attention to Elsa to look for any sign of stress or strain. And much to her surprise, she found nothing of the sort. In fact, it was pretty much the opposite.

 _Wow she looks so… happy. Almost childish… but it's more than just that. It's much different than how she is while at school. She looks completely… relaxed. As if she's letting go of all of her troubles. Like nothing's holding her back. She seems… free._

Adorning Elsa's face was probably the brightest smile Anna's ever seen on anyone ever. It's possibly on par with her own chocolate face. She couldn't stop looking at Elsa, and when Elsa turned back at Anna, whose face also seemed to show enjoyment and happiness, Elsa's smile somehow got even brighter… Easily the most beautiful thing Anna's ever seen. Probably the most amazing smile ever conceived in the entire history of amazing smiles. As Elsa began to twirl the two of them, Anna heard the most beautiful laugh. It made Anna feel… something in her chest. She wasn't sure what it was, but she knew it felt warm and almost fluffy. It made her want to laugh along with Elsa. And most importantly…

 _I never want to stop hearing this laugh. It's absolutely amazing_.

"Hm? Did you say something Anna?"

"Huh?" Anna said, obviously unaware she voiced that out loud. Blushing, she suddenly lost her balance, threatening to cause both of them to fall, which… again never came. Elsa had managed to keep both of them up again. Anna looked at her in surprise. How did she…

"I promised didn't I?" Elsa started smiling. "You wouldn't fall." With that, the pair continued to skate. As they continued, Anna began to notice that warm and fuzzy feeling again. It was strange but definitely not unpleasant. It did, however, leave Anna to wonder.

 _What is this feeling?_

* * *

 ** _A/N: Just wanted to say that this fic is mostly (well probably entirely) fluff. Just fluff. Hope you enjoyed (and will continue to enjoy) it!_**


	10. Chapter 10: Back to school work

-click- "Hello?"

Anna was lying down on her bed when she called her mom. "Hey mom."

"Oh Anna sweetie. How've you been doing dear?"

"I've been doing good. Great, actually. Things were hectic for a bit, but that cleared up. Plus, things are dying down. How 'bout you and dad?"

"Oh I've been fine. Tired though; teaching children gets absolutely crazy sometimes. Same with your father, though we do have a lot more free time without another child running around the house… occasionally crashing and/or breaking something."

"Mooom…" Anna rolled her eyes as she whined in response.

"Oh you know I'm just kidding. We really do miss you though. It's a little too quiet around the house."

"I miss you too mom" Anna said, as she began to hang off the side of her bed.

… Silence. There was an awkward silence for a few seconds, which was strange considering it _was_ Anna on the phone.

"Anna, is somethi-"

"Mom, I have a question" Anna said, probably… well definitely louder than she intended to.

"Yes?"

"Ok. So hypothetically of course. Or wait, you know about me coming back home for Christmas break right?" Anna asked timidly.

"Yeah?"

"Well… hypothetically… would it be theoretically okay for me to possibly bring a guest with me?"

Another silence. This time, Anna feared the wors-

"Oooh, a guest. Did you meet somebody? Oh you totally did. What are they like? Are they nice? What's their name? Wait. Our house? Anna, you know how your dad and I feel about people having s-"

Anna fell off the bed and began to blush. "WOAH! MOM! IT'S NOT LIKE THAT! Ow…"

"Heh, I know. It's just fun teasing you." Anna could clearly hear the amusement in her mom's voice.

"Anyway… She's a friend… and I really haven't asked her yet, you know, if she would be okay with it. I just wanted to make sure it'd be okay to ask, you know. And I want you to know as little about them as possible, just so I can sort of surprise you two when I come back?" Anna said, nervously.

"Oooh, a she!" Anna groaned an annoyed "mooom" in response. "Just kidding! One question though, is she special?"

Anna wasn't exactly sure what her mom meant by "special", or what may be implied, but she did know one thing. Was Elsa special? Duh.

"Of course she is."

"Then of course she's free to come over, if she wishes. She'll fit right in."

~~o~~

 _Frustrating. Frustrating. Frustrating._

It's October 31st, around two weeks since the group went to that mega-mall. Since then, Elsa had been hard at work, focusing on her semester project. She'd been trying to make it absolutely perfect because: 1.) Elsa was a bit (er, a total) perfectionist when it came to her own work and 2.) The fact that the person who submitted the drawing this model was based on was possibly a certain redhead (which is also great motivation). Due to her need to make it absolutely perfect, she was behind on her work. Which was due tomorrow. And because of all of that, Elsa had been spending much less time with Anna, much to both of their dismays. Something that, sadly, will probably have to continue tonight.

"Elsaa, please come with me to the Halloween party tonight. Pleeeease?"Anna pleaded.

Elsa was… conflicted. On one side, she would have loved to. It'd make her friend happy… On the other hand… "I'm sorry Anna… but my project is due tomorrow and I still need to add the finishing touches."

And, yes. Anna understood. School does come first, and Elsa has been working extremely hard. However, that doesn't mean she wouldn't feel sad, an emotion Elsa could clearly pick out from Anna's eyes. An emotion that broke Elsa's heart but… "I'm really sorry Anna, but I really need to finish this." Elsa felt like she couldn't leave it like that though, so she added "but I promise after tonight, things can go back to normal, okay?" Anna nodded, though she still seemed a bit sad.

"Now… Kristoff, would you please keep Anna company at this party?" Kristoff nodded immediately to the question that, although was technically a question, was said it in such a tone that made it seem like he had no choice in the matter. A rather commanding tone. Seeing the nod, Elsa excused herself from the table, hugging Anna before walking away. When she was out of sight, however, she sent Kristoff a text.

 _Please keep an eye on Anna at the party. They can get really out of hand._

~~o~~

Elsa was sitting alone in her room. She had finished her project around 10:30 p.m. and was silently reading a book. Silence. Oddly unnerving to the college student. Elsa usually would have been completely fine in the quiet, but she has since gotten far more used to Anna being around, at least making some kind of background noise. It was honestly too quick of a change in scenery. Elsa honestly hoped some sort of noise would co-

 ** _Knock_** ** _Knock Knock_**

Yeah. A noise just like that. As the knocking continued, Elsa realized someone was at her door. She quickly got up to answer. When she opened it, she saw… wait, what?

She was… greeted with the sight of someone, probably Anna based on the few traces of hair visible, dressed in a makeshift knight costume being carried in the arms of Kristoff, who was wearing a… a…

"… A reindeer costume? Really?"

"H-hey! It seemed cool at the time."

"… Yeah, right. Cool. Sure. Anyway, why are you back so early? And what's wrong with A-"

Suddenly, Anna opened up her eyes, and jumped out of Kristoff's arms, enveloping Elsa in a tight hug. "My Queen!"

"Queen?" Elsa said, astonished. Upon more careful inspection, Elsa saw Anna's eyes appeared a little less bright than usual. Her cheeks also appeared flush. And she reeked of alcohol…

"… Kristoff" Elsa said, her voice cold as ice. She glared at the antlered boy intensely.

Kristoff, showing fear from the icy tone Elsa used, raised both of his hands up next to his head.

"Hey, in my defense, I looked away from her for literally five seconds. Five seconds which she used to just disappeared. Apparently the punch was spiked? When I found her, she was asking everyone about the whereabouts of her queen."

Hearing this, Elsa pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm to blame. I should've warned one of you that that had a possibility of happening. Someone pulled something similar last year, but… I didn't think someone would be stupid enough to try that again, especially after what happened the- wait, five seconds? How…?"

Kristoff rubbed the back of his head and laughed awkwardly. "Yeah… Anna has… probably the worst tolerance for alcohol ever. I remember this one time in high school, she had drunk one sip of beer, and somehow she was completely drunk. And from what I gathered from the other guests, Anna had at least five cups."

The knighted Anna continued her hug, nuzzling into her "queen's" neck (which, admittedly is a tad distracting). "Alright, then. Why did you bring her here though?"

"Well… she absolutely demanded she see her 'queen'. After listening to her description, I figured she was referring to you. Plus Rapunzel's not home. Didn't think it would be a good idea for her to be alone… you are done with your project right?"

Elsa sighed. "Thankfully. Yeah, it's not the best idea to leave her alone, if she's as drunk as she is. Thank you for making sure she didn't do anything too crazy."

"No prob. Also, I'll be up all night. If you have any questions about drunk Anna, feel free to text me kay?"

"Will do, and thanks again." With that, Kristoff left, leaving Elsa alone with Anna, who has yet to loosen her grip on Elsa.

"Oh Anna… what am I going to do with you."

"My queen! I missed you so much!" Anna said, tightening her grip.

"O-ow. Anna, what are you…?"

"Queen Elsa! The queen of the kingdom of Delle! You disappeared a long time ago, but now I found you!" Anna said cheerfully.

"…" Elsa stared at Anna, trying to figure out what was being said. She then remembered that they used to play something like this when they were little. So she decided to play along. "That's right. And as your queen, I command you go to sleep."

"Nope!"

"… nope?"

"Yup! Nope. We're gonna play!"

"P… play?

"Yup!" After saying this, Anna proceeded to lean in closer and closer to Elsa. So close, in fact, Elsa could feel Anna's breathing on her face. Elsa felt her heart quicken a bit.

 _W-What is she going to d-_

"Tag! You're it!" Anna said, poking Elsa's nose before quickly walking away to Elsa's bedroom. Elsa had to take a minute to compose herself.

 _Just what was that?_

Elsa followed Anna to find her… sprawled on the floor. She clearly didn't get very far.

"Oh Anna, just. Really. What am I going to do with you?" Elsa asked… no one in particular as she helped Anna up.

"Lurrv meeeeh" Anna slurred in response.

Elsa chuckled. "Well, that's not wrong." When she stopped chuckling, she noticed Anna was staring at her. "Heh, what?"

"… Do that again."

"…Do what again?"

"Laugh."

"Why?"

"Becush. Your laugh is the beautifullest thing, like your smile. And your everything actually. And it makes me fuzzies." Anna said, looking at Elsa.

"Fuzz- Anna what're yo-"

 _Snooore._

"And now you're asle- wait. You're in your costume. Anna you can't sleep in your costume. It won't fit on the bed. You have to change. Annaaaa." Despite the pleads, Anna wouldn't wake up. She looked at the girl leaning on her shoulder and then towards her own closet. And again. And. "Oh darn it" Elsa said to herself, laughing and shaking her head.

 _What am I going to do with you indeed._

~~o~~

 _The heat was absolutely unbearable. A six year old Anna was lying in bed, seemingly very sick. Which was strange, considering the bundle of energy she usually was. She was tightly tucked into bed. Anna was clearly frustrated, though. Anna had been sick for the past three days, and had been bedridden because of it. She was not used to staying still for so long, so she was just dying to get out of bed and play… which she unfortunately didn't have the energy to do. She also hadn't been able to see Elsa at all, which just made things worse because she really missed the girl. Anna wasn't used to spending anymore than one day away from her, so this was almost torture. She missed her friend._

 _And suddenly, Anna heard a knock on her door. Not just any knock though. It was_ their _knock. Which was followed by a voice, which never failed to put a smile on Anna's face._

 _"Anna? I'm coming in."_

 _Anna heard her door open, followed by tiny footsteps which stopped right next to her. Anna turned towards the sound and gave the girl the best smile she could give._

 _"Hi Elsa."_

 _Elsa waved. With the hand she used to wave, she felt Anna's forehead. The hand felt so nice and cool, it brought another smile to Anna's face._

 _"Ow, you're burning up" Elsa said, removing her hand. Anna whined at the loss of contact. "Mrs. Sol, will she be okay?"_

 _"Well, the doctor said that she would be. She just needs plenty of rest."_

 _…_

 _There was silence. Anna could see Elsa furrowing her brow, clearly worried._

 _"Okay then… I'll see you again tomorrow, okay Anna? Get well soon" Elsa said, beginning to walk towards the door._

 _"W-wait, Elsa. Please don't go" Anna said weakly._

 _Anna heard Elsa's footsteps stop, turn around, and come towards back to her._

 _"Yes Anna?" Elsa asked, concern in her voice._

 _"C-can you read to me?"_

 _"Of course Anna." Elsa proceeded to look for a book to read to Anna, stumbling on one of Anna's old fairy tale collections. She found a story and began._

 _"Once upon a time, there was a princess…"_

~~o~~

Throb. _Ow._ Throb. _Ow._ Throb. _Ow._

Anna quickly opened her eyes and-

"Ow. Bright. Too bright." Anna whined. Usually after waking up, she'd usually go take a shower, but right now she was more focused on that amazing smell coming from "her" kitchen. Plus, she could hear her own stomach grumbling. So she slowly got out of bed and walked towards the smell, trying her best to ignore the incessant pounding of her head and the much too bright lights coming from the cracks of the curtains. And yeah, she was curious why she felt so bad right now, but at the moment, food was far more important a priority.

"Good morning Anna. Breakfast's over there on the table, with a glass of water and an Advil" Anna heard Elsa say as she walked out of "her" bedroom. Anna gave an acknowledging grunt, not paying much attention to anything. The breakfast was the number one priority. Greeting her was a plate of scrambled eggs, potatoes, bacon, and sausage. And it looked amazing. Anna took a bite of eggs and. Oh god. It was delicious. Elsa sure knew how to cook. Wait… Els..a?

"Elsa?! What're you doing in my dorm?!" Anna asked frantically.

"… _Your_ dorm?" Elsa asked, raising one eyebrow. Anna could hear amusement in her voice.

"Wait, what?" Anna looked around the room, taking in the… pictures… that were every..where… "WAIT THIS ISN'T MY DORM!" Anna looked down and saw that she was wearing light blue pajamas. Which. Wait. What?! "AND THESE AREN'T MY CLOTHES! WHAT HAPPENED LAST NIGHT?!" Anna yelled, suddenly aware she had no recollection of the previous night.

Elsa laughed. "Kristoff said you would probably be like this when you woke up, but I didn't think it would be nearly this bad." Elsa continued to laugh, which usually Anna would feel indignant about. Oddly enough, she was okay with Elsa's laugh, happy even. _Wait. Kristoff said what?_ Anna looked at Elsa in confusion.

"Alright so allow me to explain…"

And so Elsa told Anna about what happened the night prior. From Anna getting drunk (which caused her to pale and grimace, clearly remembering the stories of what happened last time that happened to her), to her suddenly falling on Elsa's floor. When Anna asked about her clothing, Elsa started stammering, because it was a little awkward... changing someone else's clothes for them, which led to both of them being awkward and blushing and stuttering. Which also led to both of them laughing at the other, effectively cutting through the awkward mood.

After they both finished laughing, Anna took a look at Elsa. She contemplated asking right now. After a few more minutes of silence, Elsa looked towards Anna and saw her staring, clearly something on her mind.

"Yes Anna?"

"Oh" Anna blushed, realizing she was blankly staring into space. "So uh yeah, I was wondering... What did you plan on doing during Christmas break?"

"Well, usually I take classes…" Anna felt a little disappointed at that answer, "… but I'm out of classes i can take during Christmas break, so I'll probably just be staying in campus doing nothing." Okay. Disappointment gone. "Why?"

"Well. I was wondering, if maybe you'd want to. Possibly. ComewithmetoDelleTownplease?" Anna quickly said.

Elsa just looked at Anna because, what'd she say? "I'm sorry can your repeat that?"

Anna breathed. She could do this. "I was just wondering if maybe. You could come with me? To Delle town?" _Good Anna just stop here_. "Cause like, I'm sure my parents would love to see you." _Alright you can stop there_. "And we could play around all day and such." _That's good._ "I mean, I'm not forcing you to or anything." _Oh… darn it_. "You can say no if you want. I wouldn't mind. Though. Maybe I would? No wait. No. It's your choice. Maybe I should've thought about how I'd ask a bit more. But uhm, I'm sure you'd like it. Nothing's changed all the much. And I just thought, 'hey maybe you'd like to go with me' and we can have fun? Again not that I'm forcing you. Or trying to guilt you. But I'd be happy if you did? Maybe?" Anna wasn't even sure if she made any sense at all. She just knew she rambled. She wished she could just be a little turtle right now and hide in her shell, shielding her from the embarrassment.

Elsa was… taken aback. She wasn't expecting an invitation really. Or at least she thought that's what that was. She contemplated for a bit. On one side, she'd have quiet time. On the other side, she'd be with An- oh who was she kidding. Anna was incorrect. She really didn't have a choice in the matter.

Elsa looked at Anna and smiled. "Of course I'll go with you." When Elsa saw the smile on Anna's face, she knew it was the correct decision.

It was almost as dazzling as the sun.


	11. Chapter 11: This place is amazing

**_Click_**

 _Dear Class,_

 _I am sending this email to inform all of you that Art 101 classes will be cancelled this coming Friday. This is a scheduled cancellation and is a result of the meet-up with the architecture students. Those of you whose art work had been selected will be receiving an email from the professor of the architecture class responsible for these models, Dr. Graves. If you do receive a email, it highly recommended you attend, though attendance is not mandatory. For those who do not receive this email from Dr. Graves, there is no need to attend any sort of class. You are allowed to bring a guest if you so wish. Thank you in advance for your cooperation._

 _From,_

 _Dr. Joan Ark._

 ** _Click_**

 _Hello students of Art 101,_

 _If you are receiving this email, your art work had been chosen by one of my Architecture students and has been made into a model. Please come to the gymnasium next to the Art building during the time that would be your class, if you wish to of course. I would recommend you come though. I can personally guarantee that the models this year are quite possibly the best I've seen in all my years of teaching. So please come. Small refreshments will be provided._

 _From,_

 _Dr. Graves._

…

"SQUEEE"

"Woah! Anna, is everything alright?!"Rapunzel yelled as she ran into the room. She was clearly concerned about her friend and roommate, who had just made the highest pitched squeak she'd probably ever heard. She saw Anna, on the floor, wearing her light green pajamas. Her hair was sticking out everywhere (she probably just woke up), and she was freaking out.

"Rapunzel! Building! Drawing! Model! Castle! Today! Art! Wheee!" Anna said nonsensically but excitedly.

Rapunzel stared at her roommate, a contemplative look on her face. "You made a drawing of a building… which was a castle. A castle that has been turned… into a model? You'll be seeing the model today? And something about an art class? ... Whee?" Rapunzel said, confusedly.

"Yea- wow, how did you get that much from what I said?" Anna stared at her roommate in disbelief

"I haven't been your roommate for two months for nothing you know?" Rapunzel said with a smirk. "But I feel like I'm missing some details. Mind filling me in?"

Anna gladly told her the whole story, starting from the email about the summer homework, to the inspiration of her work, down to her professor mentioning it in class, ending at the emails she had just received.

"And just. Maybe whoever did the model would let me take a picture. Ooh! Maybe I could show Elsa it too!"

Rapunzel looked at Anna. Rapunzel's face looked like she'd been putting together pieces of a puzzle in her head. "Or maybe Elsa bu- nah, never mind." Rapunzel said carefully.

"Wait. What were you trying to say?"

"Oh nothing. Nothing at all. Just tell Elsa, your friend who's in architecture that just happens to be taking course taught by Dr. Graves, that I say hi when you see her tomorrow," Rapunzel said, walking out of the room with a sigh.

"Will do! Maybe she can come with me to see it!"

Anna could hear a slap coming from the living room. Investigating it, Anna saw Rapunzel had a red hand shaped mark on her forehead.

"What?"

~~o~~

It was Friday. Anna had texted Elsa earlier about coming with her to see her model, but Elsa said she wouldn't be able to come. Something about prior engagements for a class.

And _sigh._

 _Oh well. Guess I better just take some amazing pictures right? Right._

Anna walked into the gym and was greeted by a man, probably in his 50s or 60s, who was clearly not a student, dressed in a dark gray suit.

"Ah welcome. Are you here for the Architecture student meet-up?" Anna nodded. "Good! I am Dr. Graves, head of the architecture department. May I have your name?" Dr. Graves extended out his hand.

Anna grabbed the hand, giving it a handshake. "Hello Dr. Graves, My name is Anna Sol."

"Anna Sol? Are you, by chance, the one who drew that castle?"

"…Yes?" Anna said, a little confused.

"Ah. It's good to finally meet you; it was beautifully drawn. By far the best of the drawings this year," Anna blushed at the compliment. "I can almost guarantee you'll love just what my student has done with it. It looks amazing."

"T-thank you sir, and I'm definitely looking forward to seeing it." Dr. Graves handed Anna a piece of paper with the numbers 3572.

"When your number is called, please proceed to the corresponding door."

 _…_ _Door?_

Anna walked into the gym to see. _Wow_. It was huge. There were several courts that were each separated into several rooms, almost like cubicles with doors. Seeing as there was no room to walk around, Anna walked to sit on the bleachers, which had dozens of people, some that she recognized from her class, others she didn't. Anna sat down and took out her phone to play with a puzzle game she'd downloaded recently. From the corner of her eyes, she could see people walk down the bleachers as their numbers were called. She could hear sounds of excitement, laughter, and the obligatory "ooh"s and "aaahs" as the art students saw the completed models. Before she realized it, Anna was already bouncing on her seat in anticipation.

 _Oh my god. What's taking soo long? I feel like I've been sitting here forever. I'm out of lives too. C'mon. 35-_

"-72?" _Wait, what?_ "Is number 3572 here?"

Anna raised her hand. "Here!"

"Ah hello. You can walk to your room now. Sorry for the wait."

Anna walked down the bleachers, a giant grin on her face. If the noises she had heard throughout the gym from all the other art students were any indication, she was in for something amazing. She looked for the door with her number on it, which did take some searching. There were _a lot_ of rooms, and hers just happened to be at the back of the gym. When she finally found the room with the white door that had her number, she saw a man standing outside of it. Looking at the white door, Anna noticed blue designs and patterns all around it, using what looked like a cross between snowflakes and flowers. Something that made sense considering her design. Unconsciously (possibly triggered by the snowflakes on the door), Anna felt for her right wrist, just to see if her snowflake charm, which she still enjoyed wearing, was there. It was.

"…Hey, sorry about the long wait. The room needed a lot of setting up," The boy said to Anna.

"Oh, it's no problem. Nope. None at all. So… were you the one who did whatever's inside there?"

"Nope. She's right inside. But believe me, you are in for a treat. If you could take a moment to look around, you'll notice that this is the biggest room here." Anna did, and she was surprised she didn't notice earlier. It really was the biggest one. By far. "Yeah, the person in there insisted she'd need the room and wouldn't settle for anything less. When Dr. Graves saw her model, as well as what she planned to do with the room, he instantly approved. I helped set up, and I do agree with his decision. It is amazing. Now please knock; she's waiting."

"Knock?"

"Yeah, she insists you knock. A bit eccentric, but you can't argue with what you're about to see."

"… okay then?" And so Anna knocked. Her knock of course, just because it is hers.

"Come in!" Anna heard a slightly muffled voice coming from the room.

 _Wait… do I know that voice?_ Ignoring the thought, Anna opened the door and was greeted by…

Snow. Or at least something that looked like snow. Everywhere. A snowman in the back. Bright lights. A veritable winter wonderland. In the center of this display was an absolutely gorgeous model. Of her drawing. It was so amazing. It even appeared to reflect the light around it, just like the way ice would reflect the sunlight. The castle was perched on the side of a model mountain. It took all of Anna's self-control to not just "squee" right then and there because… she wa _s_ in public. And she still hasn't met the person who made it. And she _could_ potentially embarrass herself doing so. Anna began to walk around the castle, taking in the entire sight. Every detail she had drawn was perfectly placed. There was even a long ice-like staircase leading up to the double doors of the castle from the base of the model mountain. She took a look at every perfectly placed design and pattern. She was looking at the balcony when.

 _Smack._

Anna felt a ball of… whatever fluff was on the floor hit the back of her head. She turned around and almost immediately cried.

It was Elsa, wearing a thin blue winter jacket and winter pants. Around her neck was a white scarf with snowflakes sewn onto it. It almost looked like an older version of what Elsa wore the day they first played in the snow. Both her hands were behind her back. She had a smile that seemed… almost like the smile she makes when ice skating. Except better. It was directed at her, and Anna felt… something in her chest. Again.

Anna didn't… exactly know what was appropriate to do, so she did what felt right. She ran towards Elsa, and pulled her into a tight hug, which was immediately returned.

"Oh my god. Elsa, This is amazing! Is this what you've been working on the past several weeks?"

"Yup. I had a hunch you made this, and you deserve the absolute best." Anna felt warmth creeping on her face. "Now, let me show you around the castle." Elsa grabbed Anna's hand and showed her around the exterior, which Anna already saw. However, Elsa had the freedom to design the interior, which she did. She opened up the castle (cue Anna's "Ooh"s and "Aah"s). On the first floor, there was a fountain, which seemed to be made out of whatever material is used in place of ice. There were stairs which led up to a door. On the top floor, there was the bedroom. There was an ice chandelier hung atop the bedroom. Elsa also showed all the doors opening and closing. Anna was… amazed. And happy. And elated. And… gassy? _Woah there Anna, reign that in._ She was just… completely in awe.

"Truth be told, though, it does seem to be missing something." Anna turned suddenly to Elsa, stunned. This castle looks absolutely perfect. _What could_ possibly _be missing?_

"Glad you asked." Elsa smiled as Anna blushed at her unintended question. "Two days ago, when Kristoff brought you to my room after that party (a blush forming on Anna's face at the sheer mention of that), I realized that I was missing something. What's a castle… without a queen or her knight?" Elsa took out two figurines: One of a queen wearing a blue dress, seemingly made out of ice, the other a knight wearing light blue armor. The two appeared to be perfectly crafted and painted. Not only that but…

"They look like us... Oh my god, Elsa, did you make these by hand?" Anna said.

Elsa smiled bashfully at the question. "Yup. This is us. This is our castle." With that admission, Anna wrapped Elsa in another tight hug. She reveled in all the sensations she felt from the hug. The smoothness of Elsa's jacket. The smell of peppermint that was just so winter. So Elsa. The sound and feeling of Elsa's breathing. And most importantly, the slender arms wrapped around her, returning her own tight hug.

"So, do you like it?" Elsa asked timidly.

"Like it? LIKE IT?! Elsa, I _love_ it. It's absolutely amazing!"

"Truth be told, I could add one more thing onto it." Anna looked at Elsa, again, in surprise. She looked back. The figures were perfect. The castle was perfect. What could she even do? "But I couldn't do it before… can't really do it right now actually... unless you have yours?" Elsa said, pointing towards her own necklace. Anna looked confused, but handed Elsa her bracelet. "Perfect." With that, Elsa took both and placed both of them on the small indentations on the double doors of the castle. "And… it's done." Anna was… definitely crying tears of joy at this point. It was just so amazing. The perfection of the model. The surrealness of having something _she_ drew manifested in something physical that she could see and touch. The figures of her and Elsa standing at the balcony, staring out into the distance. The amount of effort Elsa had to have put into this to make the castle as flawless as it actually is. And most importantly.

"Elsa… this I can't believe. It's right there. My drawing is right there. Elsa, it's so amazing. You did th- it's almost like magic. I just. Wow Elsa. Wow."Anna didn't have words to describe what she was feeling. It was definitely some sort of mix of happiness, gratefulness, awe, elation, and sheer adoration. She knew one thing however.

"Elsa, this is absolutely amazing."

 _Elsa is absolutely amazing._


	12. Chapter 12: Dreaming of ice, We Ship it

GRAGH

 _In this snowstorm, where the only thing visible was an endless stream being blown by wind, was a lone dragon, flying around aimlessly._

 _"Oh shush Vinter, we're almost there."_

 _Okay, so maybe not totally "lone". And you can even argue the "aimlessly" part. The dragon sure felt like it though. At least the latter. He was with rider, an eighteen year old knight from the kingdom of Delle. The knight was wearing slightly blue armor, snow caught in the small pieces of strawberry-blonde hair blowing in the wind. A knight who could_ feel _(feel only. Not see, of course. Honestly, the only reason the knight knows her dragon's there is because she is currently on a scaly back, rather than falling down towards what is hopefully 20 feet of pure snow) her dragon staring daggers at her face, almost as if saying_ You've been saying that for the past four days. _She petted her dragon._

 _"Oh please. You're a frost dragon, I'm sure you're totally okay in this storm. Besides I really mean it this time. I'm su-" the knight was cut off by a distinct ringing noise. Coming from her chest. She looked down to see a dazzling blue light. When she took off her necklace, she was surprised to see the half snowflake charm on it was giving off such a bright glow. A beam of light protruded from it._

 _"Follow that light Vinter!" With that command, Vinter flew quickly in the direction of the light. The knight was having a difficult time holding on, her dragon moving almost as fast as sound. Suddenly, her dragon landed on the ground and stopped, throwing her off of him. She landed into a face full of snow._

 _"Vinter!" She yelled. Vinter ignored the yell, and pointed to a point behind the knight. She turned around and. There it was. An ice castle. A long staircase leading towards the castle's double doors. After tying Vinter to the staircase ("Oh don't look at me like that. You know she doesn't like dragons inside her castles"), she climbed up the staircase made of ice (totally flawless ice by the way). She walked up to the doors and…_

 _Oh. Really?_

 _Knock. Just Knock._

Sigh.

 **Knock kno-**

 _The doors suddenly opened, leaving her a little surprised. She's usually able to finish her knock. She walked in through the double doors and._

 _"Wow, this place looks amazing." The knight stood where she was and stared in awe at the absolute beauty within. She found herself having difficulty balancing as she walked further in (the floors were made of ice after all), but managed to find her balance. She took a good look around, noticing the fountain made of ice as the centerpiece of the room. She noted the intricate designs and patterns on the wall. The staircase leading up to another set of double doors. The hexagonal snowflake imprinted on the ceiling. The-_

 _"Anna?"_

 _The Anna... Wait, what?_

 _Anna turned to look towards where the voice came from. On top of the staircase stood Elsa. The snow queen. Anna's lost friend. Obviously much older than Anna remembered. And possibly more beautiful than before. The queen's thick platinum blonde hair was done in a thick braid, snowflakes adorning it. Wisps of her bangs were pushed back to the top of her head, with a tiny piece hanging on her forehead. She was wearing a dress made out of her ice, a slit going up to just above her right knee. The bodice of her dress was made of crystalline ice. She was looking at Anna, almost longingly._

 _And just. She looked absolutely stunning. And it took Anna about two minutes to realize she was just staring at her. Once she realized it, she began to speak to fill in the awkward silence that she just noticed was there. Which led to…_

 _"Wow. Elsa, you… you look different."_ Nope Anna, wrong word. _"It's a good different"_ Better? I guess. Eh, just roll with it. _"A very good different. And this place is just. Wow. And you look wow, though I guess I already said something like that. I just can't believe it. It's you, I found you. And I'm- Woah!" Anna began to lose her balance on the ice._

 _Suddenly Elsa was right next to her, keeping her up. Looking closer, Anna could see that Elsa's also wearing heels. Made of ice._ How do you? She's wearing heels on ice. And balancing. How?!

 _And like that, Elsa began to laugh softly at Anna's probably unintentionally spoken thought. Anna would usually pout in situations like this, but she was more focused on the fact that whenever Elsa was laughing, the colors of the ice seemed to change. Almost like the aurora the two of them use to look at when they were younger. It was absolutely amazing, leaving Anna full of wonder and awe._

 _"Hey Anna?"_

 _"Yeah?" Anna responded distractedly._

 _Elsa twirled her wrist, the magic Anna had adored coming out of them. Suddenly, Anna noted a sudden increase in height. Looking down, she saw that skates were suddenly added onto the bottom of her boots._

 _"Oh Elsa, they're beautiful. But, you know I don't skaa-" She was interrupted by Elsa grabbing her arms._

 _"Oh come on!" Elsa said happily. She dragged Anna around the ice floor of her castle. Anna, realizing she wouldn't be able to get out of this, resigned herself to enjoying the company Elsa brought. It felt… different. Definitely a good different. An amazing different really. Being with Elsa right now. It felt… comforting. Safe. Warm and cool (somehow). In Elsa's arms, Anna felt a feeling of completeness. A feeling of joy._

 _A feeling of-_ **BEEP BEEP**

~~o~~

 ** _BEEP BE- smack_** **.**

Anna woke up feeling much more refreshed than usual. Probably from the dream she just had. She admitted it was probably the most pleasant dream she's ever had. She did her usual morning tasks needed to get ready for class that day (which went faster than usual since her hair wasn't its usual giant mass of orange sticking out everywhere). Before leaving, she looks at her phone to see the date and time.

 _November five? Ooh! It's that day of the year again._ With that thought, Anna exited her room, ready to run to class.

~~o~~

It started out as a joke.

An inside joke actually. Between Kristoff, Sven, Olaf, Marshall, Rapunzel, and Eugene. Possibly not even that. Maybe more a passing comment. Which came from Rapunzel about how close the two girls had gotten in such a short amount of time, possibly spurred on by her first meeting with Elsa holding Anna on a couch. A joke here and there about how the two may as well be dating. They all chuckled at the time, because yeah the girls were always together. It sure seemed that way. The two were practically always by each other's side. Yes they did indeed look cute together. But, it was all understandable, given their shared past. Three years together. Ten years apart. That's a long time. So what if they wanted to spend every day together to make up for lost time. They deserved to. It was perfectly fine. Totally platonic. Almost sisterly really.

…

Then the group went ice skating, and the two girls spent the entire time together. Which was normal. They did that often. However, looking at the two of them, it seemed like they were in their own little world as they skated- well as Elsa dragged Anna- around the ice. Plus the looks on their face just screamed the feelings weren't exactly platonic. According to Olaf, who has seen Elsa ice skate before, Elsa looked more relaxed and happy than she had ever been before. She usually looked relaxed and happy skating, but it seemed to be even moreso with Anna there. According the Kristoff, the look on Anna's face whenever she looked at Elsa that time was one of extreme adoration. One he'd never seen in the four years he'd known her. Despite almost breaking his nose when he skated right into the wall, he was still able to laugh at the possible irony in Elsa's promise. "You wouldn't fall." Because to him, that seemed to be exactly what was happening to Anna. "Falling".

The following weeks were … a lot more painful to watch. This was the time Elsa and Anna couldn't spend as much time together due to Elsa's project. Don't misunderstand. The two did spend some time together… but they didn't spend nearly as much time as either of them would've liked to. The group noticed both girls were sadder than usual. Rapunzel even noted that Anna had less energy than usual compared to her usual self (which granted doesn't mean much considering how much energy she usually has) whenever she was in the room.

And then there was Halloween. Kristoff learned firsthand just how protective Elsa could be of Anna. If that's how much fear she could strike into his heart just from a tone of voice, he wouldn't even want to imagine what would have happened if he had actually lost Anna. He probably could have found himself lost in the middle of the ocean or something. Maybe somehow frozen in a block of ice. He also noted the softening of Elsa's tone when a drunken Anna clung onto her. The quick glances Elsa sent Anna as Anna nuzzled into her neck. Quick glances that Kristoff's not even sure Elsa noticed she was making glances herself. Not to mention the way drunk Anna had described "her queen".

 _"Okay my trustful steed! I'm looking for my queen. Ten years ago, she was taken away from her kingdom. And me! Sir Anna was tasked to find her. Okay so, have you sheen her? She has like, the most beautiful blonde hair. Like yours, but lighter. Much lighter. It's also extremely thick. Like just really wanna run your fingers through them thick. Her skin is also extremely fair, with the tiniest, most adorable spattering of freckles. Barely there really. Her skin is also extremely smooth. But her eyes. Are like amazing. They're like icy blue. Like really icy blue. Eyes I can imagine getting lost in. So yeah! Have you seen someone like that?"_

Then there was Rapunzel's account on how Anna was like when she eventually came back to her dorm after seeing the model of her castle, built by Elsa (something that everyone in the group kind of figured would happen). No one but her really saw her that day, and Rapunzel noted that Anna walked back into their dorm with a dreamy look on her face. When Rapunzel asked about how it went, Anna rambled on about how the castle looked amazing. How every detail was amazing. How the entire set-up was amazing. How much effort Elsa must have spent working on that castle. Anna even showed Rapunzel the two figures that Elsa had made by hand, freaking out in the process over just how perfect it all was. How absolutely adorable her friend looked in her clothes, apparently a nineteen year old version of the clothes she wore when they first played in the snow. Gushing over how amazing Elsa, her _friend_ is. And lastly about how lucky and happy she felt having Elsa, her _friend_ , back.

There's that word again. _Friend_. It just seemed highly unlikely to everyone at the group that Anna and Elsa had only platonic feelings for the other. The quick glances. The contact. The looks reserved only for the other. It would take someone extremely oblivious to thi-

Oh, wait. That… makes sense.

Kristoff could attest to Anna's obliviousness. Back in high school, she never did notice that people all around her were falling in "like" with her (she never did take those dates seriously). Not to mention how cautious she actually was about actual, serious, dating ever since the whole Hans incident (Kristoff's pretty sure that wasn't even as serious as it felt back then. Looking back at it, in the time they "dated" Anna never really knew anything about the person). Plus, despite dating her, Kristoff felt like Anna never really felt what could be considered genuine romantic love for anyone back in high school. So it seems plausible that Anna might just unaware of her emotions, misconstruing her current emotions for something you feel whenever you're reunited with a long lost friend. A long lost best friend. And Kristoff can't really read Elsa as well, but he thinks it's safe to assume a similar situation for her. That or he, and everyone else in their group, were misreading (…or reading too much into) the situation. He was more confident about the former though. He was raised by love experts after all. Plus he could, at least somewhat, read Anna. He could tell the way Anna was around Elsa was much different than the way she is around other people. Happier definitely. Somehow more playful (though Elsa also keeps Anna's energy in check). In words Anna would probably use, it was a good different.

However, the possibility that they were just over-thinking everything was still there. And the sheer possibility sometimes led the group to meticulously observe the two for any signs supporting their hypothesis.

"Guys?"

Which sometimes led to the group silently watching the two of them.

"Hello?"

When they really should be responding back.

"Guuys?"

Like right now.

"… Guuuys? What is up with you guys? Hello?!" Anna asked, exasperatedly.

"Oh, wait what? Sorry Anna. What were you saying?" Kristoff was the first to recover.

"I was asking everyone if everyone knew what they were doing for Christmas break."

Everyone said they were going home, which was expected really.

"Sheesh, what's up with all of you?" Anna asked.

"Uhm, just a little… distracted" Rapunzel responded.

"… All of you?" Anna asked suspiciously.

"Yes." Everyone, but Anna and Elsa, said in unison

"Uhh, Wh-"

"Anna? Shouldn't you go soon? You have your art club thing in like five minutes." Elsa said, much to the relief of all the other people around the table.

"Oh shoot, that's right. Thanks Els," Anna sent an appreciative glance towards Elsa before giving her a hug. "Well, I guess I'm going. Oh yeah, Kris. Sven. Today's November five. You know what that means."

The brothers nodded simultaneously. Elsa sent a confused glance towards Anna.

"You two tell her, I gotta run. Later guys!" Anna ran off towards the art building, leaving the whole group behind.

"So Kristoff?" Elsa asked.

"Well, Anna likes to celebrate all kinds of anniversaries. She likes to do things that we did when we first met." Kristoff said matter-of-factly. "… which we can tell you about now."

"Because she's not here." Sven said.

Both Kristoff and Sven glanced at each other, smirking mischievously.

"Well, it all started about four years ago. Anna was…"

~~o~~

Rock climbing. Or rather climbing an indoor rock climbing wall. Anna had gotten a lot better at it over the past four years. Which wasn't that hard considering her first experience with it.

"Ngh. So. Kris, you're going back home over break?" Anna asked as she climbed alongside him.

"Yup."

"Ah sweet. I -ugh- have something to ask you later after this."

"Might wanna focus on climbing on Anna, don't want a repeat of two years ago... or four years ago," Sven said from the other side.

"That was one tiny little… fall. I've gotten a lot better since then." Anna said.

"That just means a farther distance to fall," Kristoff added.

"Sheesh, you two are mean," Anna said shaking her head, a smile on her face. "Remind me why we're friends."

"Cause you almost fell off a rock climbing wall before?" Sven responded.

"… Right."

"Besides, you love us." Kristoff added.

"You two are really making me question tha- WOAH!"

~~o~~

The three of them were sitting in an ice cream shop, Anna devouring her cup.

"Woah slow down there Feistypants." Kristoff exclaimed.

"But it's chocolate!"

"That aside, I'm surprised you managed to catch yourself after losing your footing." Sven said.

"I told you I was getting better!" Anna responded to what she decided was praise. "Anyway," Anna started, finishing her cup of ice cream, "I have something to tell you two."

"What?" the brothers both asked.

"You're both invited to Elsa's surprise birthday party!"

"Oh swe- wait, didn't you say her birthday was on December 22nd?" Kristoff asked.

"Yup!"

"… So it'll be an in advanced party?" Sven questioned, confused.

"… nope? Oh right, forgot to tell you. Elsa's coming with me back home for Christmas break!"

"She's what?!" Kristoff and Sven both yelled, surprised.

~~o~~

Anna was exhausted as she climbed back to her (well, Elsa's room first). Climbing walls really took a lot out of her, and she was ready to spend another few hours with Elsa. She knocked her knock on the door before using her spare key to open it (the two have gotten used to that routine).

"Okay, yeah. Thank you. Bye." Anna heard Elsa's voice say those words.

"Anyone else in here Els?"

"Oh, nope, just was on the phone."

"That's great! Cause I'm beat!" Anna said before promptly dropping on the couch. "Used the rock climbing wall today!"

"You went with Kristoff and Sven?"

"Yup!"

"Didn't fall?"

"… I was close, but I caught myself!" Anna said, proudly.

"Did you manage to climb more than two feet this time?"

Anna immediately got up to face towards Elsa, who was on the table looking at her while doing some homework. Anna could clearly see the smirk in her friends face though. Which wasn't helping the embarrassed blush Anna clearly felt on her cheeks. Which was just…

"Kristoff?"

"Kristoff. And Sven."

"Tch. Those two are so gonna get it next time I see them" Anna said before returning to her original position on the couch.

Satisfied with knowing a little bit more about Anna (as well as the reaction she got from Anna), Elsa returned to her homework, an amused and happy smile on her face.


	13. Chapter 13: Back to Delle

After Anna's, Kristoff's, and Sven's "friendship anniversary", the rest of the semester just flew by. Anna got her revenge on both her friends for telling Elsa the story of their first meeting. Revenge which may or may not have involved toothpaste, orange juice, a RC helicopter, ice, hot sauce, and whipped cream. And no, Anna would never tell what she did with them, not even to Elsa. And Kristoff and Sven, despite clearly being disturbed by what they had experienced, absolutely refused to explain what had happened to them. Then there was Thanksgiving, where all members of the group met together to eat as a group at Elsa's room to eat, leading to everyone passed out on the floor from having a food coma. Not to mention finals week happening. Finals that Anna still found annoying to deal with. She studied with Elsa just like during midterms, Anna making sure Elsa didn't study herself to the ground, and Elsa making sure Anna… actually studied. Luckily for the two girls, their finals ended early, meaning they could have their winter break earlier. As such, the two girls said their byes to the group (or in Kristoff and Sven's case, "see you two in a few days"), packed up their things, and left for Delle Town.

Which left them in the position they were currently in. Anna and Elsa were sitting next to each other in a two seat section of their row. Which Anna was happy about. It was just about everything else that was making this flight almost unbearable. The least of the issues was the tiny size of the seats. It was okay since, at this point, Anna and Elsa were used to being… shoulder-to-shoulder, almost hip-to-hip. The issues got worse from there. For some reason, the in-flight entertainment wasn't working on this flight. There was no movie playing. Somehow, the radio stations (barring the station reserved for information from the cockpit) were all down. Her iTouch had suddenly ran out battery. And the worst of her problems was the baby that she _swore_ was at most two rows behind them. Ordinarily, Anna liked babies. But something about the baby's incessant crying, coupled with the lack of entertainment was driving her insane.

Elsa was quick to notice Anna's distress. She could feel Anna shaking her leg, an action Anna rarely ever does. Looking at her face, she could almost see her twitching a little bit. And, considering what Elsa knows about Anna and long car rides, she could tell her friends was absolutely restless. What could she do though? Usually Anna sleeps… but there was no way Anna could go to sleep in all this noise. And the entertainment's out. Not like there was anything to distract her.

…

Wait. She could do that. She could totally find a way to keep Anna busy enough to not care about the everything on the plane. But what could she do? She didn't have any handheld games on her. Elsa held on to Anna's hand, trying to keep her calm.

 _I mean. What can I do? I have no games we can play. The only things I have with me are a book, paper, pencils, a pho- Paper and pencils. Maybe I can…_

"Psst, hey Anna," Elsa said, poking Anna's cheek. Anna turned around, an annoyed look on her face. A look that would have worried Elsa if she didn't know it was directed toward just about everything else on the plane. After seeing that she got her attention, Elsa took out a piece of paper and a pencil, opened up the seat trays, and said, "Wanna draw, Anna?" And maybe that seemed just a little bit childish, but Elsa knew Anna loved to doodle. And maybe if she joined her doodling, it'd help pass the time more quickly.

Anna looked at Elsa, then eyed the paper and pencils curiously, not too sure where to begin. When she didn't take the pencil immediately, Elsa immediately rolled her eyes and placed the pencil into Anna's hands. Elsa then proceeded to write out the words "Favorite animal" and "Guess" below that. From there, Elsa began to draw an animal, and she urged Anna to guess what it would be, kind of like Pictionary. As they played, Anna and Elsa lost track of time, and eventually both sides were filled up with random doodles. Some doodles were part of their Pictionary-esque game, based on different categories. For favorite animal, there was a sloth and a wolf. Favorite game: a race kart and a Poke ball. Favorite flavor of ice cream: chocolate and an arrow pointing at the drawing of chocolate. At some point, the two stopped their game and just began random doodling. Elsa drew buildings, amusement park attractions she'd been to, and various other buildings. Anna filled up the space with cartoon people, animals, and any other imaginary thing that came to mind. Like a talking snowman. Or a giant marshmallow-like being. Or someone dressed up as St. Joan of Arc. Lastly, she took the liberty of adding on two little girls onto the Ferris wheel Elsa had drawn. Understanding why Elsa had suggested doodling, Anna wrote two words at the bottom of the paper.

 _Thank you._

~~o~~

When the plane landed, Anna texted her parents, telling them they had arrived. After they got their bags, Anna was the first one to walk out of baggage claim. Her parents were already there, and she ran towards the both of them, wrapping them in a big hug.

"Mom! Dad! I missed you so much."

"We missed you too honey." Anna's mom, Andrea, said.

The three let go of the hug, leaving a little bit of an awkward silence. "Ahem" Anna's dad, Christian, decided to break it. "So who's the person who's going to be staying over at our house?"

"Oh! Right. Okay, uhm." Anna continued to say various stall words as she struggled to grab her phone from her bag. "I told her to wait until I gave her the okay to come out." Anna said as she tapped on her phone screen. And now they wait.

And wait.

…

About ten minutes later (because she may or may not have been a teensy bit− extremely− paranoid about having all her things), Elsa walked through the exit. She was greeted by a bright, toothy grin (courtesy of her best friend), and two pairs of widened eyes (courtesy of who she recognized as Anna's parents). Both people looked either… confused or surprised. Elsa wasn't entirely sure. The woman was the first one to recover, and Elsa was quickly trapped in a (rather tight) bear hug by the orange haired, brown eyed, woman who was slightly taller than Anna.

"Oh my god. Elsa? Is that actually you?!" Andrea yelled.

"Ow. Yes it's- ow- me" Elsa struggled to say., through the (somehow tighter than she was used to) hug.

"Mooom. Please. You're killing her"

"Wha- Oh! Sorry Elsa. Got a bit carried away." Andrea said, letting go. Elsa took this opportunity to breathe, her lungs given the room to… well work. _So that's where Anna gets her energy from._ "Now please, tell us. How've you been? Where've you been? What's it li-"

"Uhm, maybe we should do this in the car? Anna and Elsa look really tired," Christian said, interrupting her. He had brown hair and teal eyes, Elsa noted. _Definitely Anna's parents._

"Oh fine. Let's go everybody! To the car!" The four of them walked over to a green SUV. Anna and Elsa stuffed their luggage and carry-ons in the back and sat inside. When they all got in, Andrea bombarded both Anna and Elsa with questions, which they were both happy to answer. Elsa happily recounted how she and Anna first met, even though Anna failed to recognize her ("Hey! In my defense, I was rushing." "And you knocked me down" "… And I knocked you down"). They both talked about their friends and how nice they all are. Anna talked about the Halloween party she went to (both girls conveniently "forgetting" Anna's drunken experience). And of course the two girls talked about the other and how happy they were that they were reunited, prompting a smile on everyone's face. The only topic that wasn't touched was that of Elsa's parents. Not because her parents didn't ask. They definitely tried. Not Elsa's fault either. It was Anna who stopped any and all mentions about Elsa's parents, a little worried about the last time the topic came up. And of course, she did it with as much skill as Anna improvising could muster.

 _"So Elsa, how's your fa-"_

 _"Her fans are nice! I've been to her room. They're not too loud and provide a lot of ventilation."_

 _"Okay then…? What I meant to say is how are your pa-"_

 _"Her pants are great! Look! Don't they make her legs look great! WAIT. Not that that aren't great normally. Wait. Didn't mean that. I mean didn't mean to say that. I'm sure they would make other people's legs look great… but wait no. Not as much as yours. Wait, didn't mean that. Not that your legs aren't great. They totally are, didn't mean that in a weird way. Wait. No er. Your as- I'll shut up now_ "

Yup. Lots of skill. She probably should have prepared for this earlier, but it worked. All parties in the car were… very confused. Or at least Anna's parents seemed that way. Elsa was looking away from Anna. Not that she minded really; she had just made a fool of herself. Though, looking at Elsa, Anna thought she saw the teeniest bit of red on her ears, although that could just be the tired talking.

Thanks to the many questions, the drive went by quickly. When they got home, the parents showed Elsa the guest room, where she'd be staying. They all ate dinner (or well breakfast for dinner. Cause who doesn't love that), and the girls were given time to unwind and unpack. Afterwards, the two girls spent time to watch television, sitting on the couch. Quietly. Just enjoying the presence of the other until it was time to go to sleep.

At least, that was Elsa's intention. Anna, on the other hand, had other ideas. Much different ideas. At around 1 a.m., she snuck into the guest room from her bedroom and crept towards Elsa's bed.

"Elsa. Psst. Elsa! Psst." Anna whisper yelled as she popped her head up besides the bed. "Wake up. Wake up Wake up!"

Elsa turned towards the girl and opened one eye. "Anna, go back to sleep" Elsa grumbled trying to sound annoyed, but the smile on her face betrayed her effort.

Anna got on the side of the bed and dramatically said, "I just can't! The sky's awake! So I'm awake!"

Elsa rolled her eye. "Anna, it's like 1 a.m. The skies are completely asle-" Elsa took a peek at the window revealing… "Why is there an aurora?"

"So we have to play!" Anna finished happily.

"…Go play by yourself," Elsa said, playfully pushing Anna a bit.

Anna took some time to think of a way to get Elsa to play with her. They had just gotten back; she didn't want her first day back to be over just yet. What could she possibly ask to get Elsa out of bed and come with her to play? What even was there to do?

 _Ugh. Coming up with ideas was so much easier as a chi- That's it!_ And maybe it was childish, but Anna was pretty sure it would work. Even if purely by nostalgia. So she turned around, poked Elsa's face and asked.

"Do you wanna build a snowmaan?"

Elsa opened one eye to look at Anna again, failing to hide the smile that was threatening to appear on her lips. At the tiniest twitch of the corner of her lips, Anna immediately dragged her out of bed, knowing the answer was totally 100% positive. They both ran excitedly down the stair, Anna giggling the whole way through as Elsa tried to "shh" her so as to not wake Anna's parents up. They both walked outside and were greeted with a grand amount of snow, which had them both jumping excitedly. They started out making snowmen, some deformed with less circular pieces for the body, and some the standard shapes. Anna ran back inside to grab some carrots, so that they could be perfect.

The fun and calm snowman building session quickly turned into a heated (… or maybe frigid works in this case) snowball fight when Elsa threw a snowball, aiming for the back of Anna's head… who just happened to turn around and got hit in the face as a result. Elsa initially looked concerned, but her expression changed to a challenging smirk when she saw Anna was okay. And then what started as a normal snowball fight (using normal hand-sized snowballs) elevated to an all out snow war, using snowballs the size of a snowman's head (no, they never touched the snowman they built). Despite the mutual sense of competition, however, both girls were laughing and giggling the entire time, clearly having the time of their lives.

~~o~~

"Sounds like they're having fun, huh honey?" Andrea asked, her pair of brown eyes looking down at the two of them from their bedroom window.

"Yeah, it sure does. It's nice, you know, having the both of them around again" Christian said, sitting on the bed. "It's a nice change of pace, and I haven't seen Anna this happy in years."

"Yeah, the sound of their laughter is music to my ears." Andrea closed her eyes, taking in the sound of the girls' laughter, a smile growing on her face. She then quickly turned around and opened her eyes, getting Christian's attention. "So, how long do you give the two of them?" Andrea said, a knowing smile on her face.

"Oh, whatever do you mean sweetie?" Christian asked, feigning innocence.

Andrea rolled her eyes at her husband. "You know what I mean. The subtle glances. The two girls are inseparable as ever. Anna sacrificing her dignity so that we wouldn't breach the uncomfortable subject of Elsa's parents, may they rest in peace. Not to mention, between Anna's outright admittance to how great Elsa's legs looks and the blush and small smile I saw on Elsa's face immediately after, I think it's safe to say they probably like each other. Or at least find the other attractive."

Christian chuckled. "Yeah, they've got it pretty bad."

"So how long do you think?"

"Two months"

Andrea stared. "I doubt Anna's so cliché as to do it before Valentine's day."

"Wanna bet?"

"Same as usual?"

The couple playfully glared at the other. This would be fun.

~~o~~

After the snowball war, which Anna lost (she doesn't really know what she was thinking. Playing a snowball fight against someone essentially immune to the cold), the two girls lied next to each other, both exhausted. Hand in hand, the two girls stared at the colorful lights the aurora brought.

Elsa broke the silence they had with a content sigh. "It's times like these when I wish I could just… freeze time. Capture the moment."

"Yeah, I see what you mean" Anna sighed as well, slowly watching snow fall out of the corner of her eye. "But it's also days like this where I look forward to the future."

Elsa turned towards Anna. "Hm?"

Anna returned the gesture. "I mean, if today can be this great, imagine what life can be like in the future."

"Future? Oh, I really have never asked you about that. What do you see yourself doing?"

At that question, Anna's eyes brightened up. "Well, I'm majoring in art, so I hope I'm able to become a successful artist. But mostly, I want to be able to open, or be head of, an art gallery that displays works from both undiscovered and famous artists. Maybe even my work. I love art, and I really want to work where I can be surrounded by it." Anna just gave a smile.

"… Art gallery huh?"

"You say something Els?"

"Nope! Nothing."

"And what about you Els? Where do you want to end up?"

"Well, I kind of want to be head of my own architecture firm. But really, I want to be able to look at a building and know that I designed it. That it was my own mark on the world." Anna sent an admiring smile towards Elsa after hearing her answer. Elsa returned it, and the two continue to lie down there, looking into each others' eyes. Both girls were almost content to just spend the night like this. Lying down under the aurora in a blanket of snow.

… Almost.

Sleeping in snow wasn't the best idea. Both girls knew this. Not only that, but Anna was starting to get cold, and of course Elsa wouldn't have that… something Anna herself knew. So before Elsa could go into her protective mode, Anna got up first and offered her hand to Elsa to help her up. Elsa happily obliged and grabbed on to be pulled up. They stood there for a moment in silence until Elsa noticed what direction she was facing: right. Face-to-face ( _Or I guess wall_ , Elsa thought) with her old house. She started to feel just a tiny bit wistful.

"Hey Anna, who lives there now?" Elsa asked, pointing forward.

Anna turned around. "Oh! The Oakens moved in there maybe six years ago? Yeah. They're a really big family… and I don't only mean in number. My dad only reaches up to the tallest person's chest. You can tell who he is from his moustache which seems to connect with his sideburns. The whole family is really nice though. They also sometimes wear some very colorful outfits. Though, it's best not to get on their bad side… Kristoff did that once, and let's just say he was met with a faceful of the snow."

Elsa just looked at her house. Well, her old house. And there's something about it. Something… maybe nostalgic? An odd feeling in her chest. And for some reason, there's a small voice in the back of her head telling her that, maybe. Just maybe her parents were there. Waiting for her. But Elsa knew better than that. They're not there. She shook her head, and she felt tears beginning to fall from her eyes. Anna noticed this and looked at her, concern in her eyes.

"Elsa? Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah just. Anna, I have a question."

"Yeah?"

"Did your parents order our tickets back to school already?"

"Uhm, nope. I don't think so. Why?"

"Okay… I just asked because I want to go visit my aunt for the first time in almost four years… towards the end of break."

"Ah alright. When do we leave?"

"I plan on spending the last two da- We?" Elsa looked at Anna, surprised.

"Yeah. We. I mean, if my parents are okay with it."

"Anna. A-are you sure? It's your break. You should be with your family."

Anna bit her lip in thought, trying to figure out how to word what's she was thinking. Because. Yes she wanted to go with her. For support? Maybe. It would be good to be with her best friend. Maybe to meet the family? It's possible. Any people important to Elsa, Anna would want to meet. But was that the actual reason? Was there something more fundamental there? Something more important?

…

 _Well of course._

"Oh Elsa. You are family. More than that really. And really, I just don't feel like letting you out of arm's reach. Not again. Not now. Not ever." Anna said that, firmly.

And Elsa could see the look on Anna's face. There's no way she was backing down. So she did what she could. Laughed. Honestly, she was relieved that she'd have her there. A familiar face. Strong and caring support. A smile to shine light up even the darkest nights. And quite frankly, Elsa couldn't imagine being apart from the girl again. Even if only for two days.

And with tears in her eyes and laughter coming out of her mouth, Elsa embraced Anna in the tightest hug she could muster. Gratefully, she mumbled out a soft, but most definitely sincere−

− _Thank You_


	14. Chapter 14: Birthday Prep

**_Click_**

Kristoff and Sven finally got back home after a long week of finals.

 _Ugh, why couldn't we be done four days early like Anna and Elsa_.

As Kristoff opened the door so the both of them could get in, they were greeted by Bulda, their mother, and several of their cousins.

"Kristoff and Sven are hoome!" All of them yelled out. Kristoff and Sven both waved at them all happy to see them, splitting up to talk with their relatives.

"Wow, Pebs, you're getting strong!"

"Opal, you've gotten so much taller since I last saw you."

"Aw, Emi, you look so pretty."

"No Pebs! Don't pull me do- WOAH- Ow." Kristoff was on the ground, Pebs on his back. Scratching the back of his head, Kristoff turned to Bulda. "Where's Grand Pabbie?"

"Oh he's asleep upstairs. You can probably see him later."

 ** _Ding!_**

Kristoff grabbed his phone and looked to see who sent it. _Anna._ Welp. Kristoff opened up the message:

 _Hey Kris! Welcome back! So on December 21, mind coming over to my house? I need help with something. Bring Sven too! I would really appreciate your help. Also, bring eggs. And flour. I need those. I'll pay you back after! Cya later :)_

Kristoff sighed and turned towards Sven, who had both Opal and Emi riding his back. "Hey Sven. Looks like we're going to Anna's on the 21st."

"Ooh! A girl!"

"Emi! It isn't like that!"

"Yeah Emi, It's Anna. You remember her?" Pebs asked.

"Oh right! Anna!" Emi playfully said. Kristoff just sighed and buried his head into his hands.

~~o~~

 _December 21_

 _Hey. Mom and dad. Do you mind getting Elsa out of the house? Kristoff and Sven are coming over, and I need their help preparing for Elsa's birthday tomorrow! So Pleeeease?_

"Elsa!" Andrea said happily.

"Yes Mrs. Sol?"

"Oh please, call me Andrea. And also," Andrea grabbed Elsa's arm," we're taking you Christmas shopping!"

"Wait, what?" Elsa asked, as she was dragged out of the house by the older, stronger woman. "But shouldn't you take Anna with you?!"

"Nope!"

"B-But. Anna!" Elsa yelled as she was dragged out of the house into the car.

"Oh Elsa please, we're shopping for Anna's presents. We can't have her come with us." Andrea said.

Elsa looked out the window, sighing exaggeratedly. _Oh well, I needed to buy her something anyway_.

~~o~~

 ** _Knock Knock Knock_**

Anna was in the middle of checking all of the things she had in the kitchen when she heard the knock.

 _Must be Kris and Sven._ She thought as she walked to and opened the door. She was correct.

"Hey Kris, Sven."

"Yo Anna" Both twin said simultaneously. "We got the eggs and flour" Kristoff continued.

"Sweet! Now you two are gonna help me!"

"…Help you?" Sven asked

"Yup! We're making a cake!"

"A c-cake?" Kristoff and Sven both mumbled to each other before looking at the other in confusion.

~~o~~

Elsa, Andrea, and Christian arrived at the mall about thirty minutes after they left the house. They were at the local video game store searching for a game Andrea said Anna had asked for. They were also there to get a new case for both Anna's phone and 3DS. Afterwards, they began to walk around the mall, Elsa lost in thought.

 _They are right. I do need to think of something to get her. But what would she want?_

The trio walked into a department store in search of something.

 _Maybe clothes? Too simple, too boring. A book? Nah, I'm not really sure what kind of books she'd like to read._

Elsa was looking at the ground, absentmindedly following Andrea as she thought of what to get Anna for Christmas. She was thinking so much, she failed to notice they had left the department store. She also failed to notice the wide, almost cat-like grin on Andrea's face. Or that Christian, who was staring daggers at Andrea, had stopped following them into whatever store they were going into. Or that the store they had walked into was just a tad bit darker than the others.

Andrea chuckled a bit, noticing Elsa's apparent distraction. "Hey Elsa?"

"Yeah?" Elsa answered, but with her mind clearly somewhere else.

"Which of all of these do you think Anna would look best in?" Andrea asked innocently, gesturing to a wall.

At the mention of "Anna" and the words "look best in", Elsa's mind instantly created an image of Anna as a model. She then looked up from the floor and immediately paled. Then reddened. Elsa wasn't even sure. She did quickly realize two things though.

1.) In her thoughts, she had somehow wandered into a random lingerie store. _How does someone even pay that little attention?!_ Elsa asked herself.

And

2.) She was imagining Anna in every single piece on that wall. A task that was, inconveniently, extremely easy, thanks to Elsa having changed Anna's clothes the past Halloween, giving Elsa's imaginary model an accurate depiction of Anna's every feature. Every curve. Freckles peppered on her shoulders, reaching down to her chest. With every passing outfit, the model's smiled turned more teasing. Sultry.

 _Why am I still imagining this? Oh my god Elsa, stop. Why can't I stop?! WHY CAN'T I LOOK AWAY?!_

Elsa could feel her mouth going dry, her heart beginning to pound, and her palms getting sweaty. There was a definitive ringing in her ears. Her face was practically radiating heat.

"Uhm Elsa? Helloo?" Andrea asked, waving her hand in front of Elsa's face.

"I… I-I" Elsa barely managed to stutter out, her hands opening and closing at her sides. Her eyes still scanning the wall because _Jebus! Why are there SO MANY?!_

"Aww, this is too cute. She's usually much more composed than that." Andrea said, noting Elsa practically ogling the wall. However, when Elsa continued to just stand there motionless, save for her eyes, mouth, and hands, Andrea turned towards Christian. "Honey? Honey I think I broke her" was all Andrea could say to her husband.

Christian just shook his head, walked in, and grabbed Elsa's arm, pulling her out of the store. Which was actually kind of difficult because Elsa's legs didn't appear to be working at the moment. "Andrea, please have mercy on the poor girl."

"Fiiine, let's stop by an ice cream shop, so she can cool down." Andrea said, leaving the store.

"I-I" Elsa stuttered out, the imaginary model still on Elsa's mind.

~~o~~

After Anna, Kristoff, and Sven made the chocolate cake batter (for some reason, Anna insisted Kristoff and Sven do all the egg cracking), the trio put it into a pan.

"And now we pre-heat the oven to-"

"Anna, you know you're not allowed to touch the oven" Kristoff said.

"Kris, that was one time!"

"Five times, if I remember correctly. Each time leading to a rather early dismissal during home-ec" Sven responded.

"Ugh. Fine. Kristoff, you do it. I'll get started on the ice cream base."

"Ice cream?!" Both Sven and Kristoff asked at the same time.

"Yeah, ice cream. We're making a chocolate ice cream cake here"

"Chocola- Anna are you maki-"

"Nope! Don't have the ingredients on me, have to use cocoa powder." Anna said, matter-of-factly. Anna began to mix cream, sugar, milk, extract, and chocolate in a saucepan, which she then heated. Afterwards, she put the mixture into the fridge.

"Alright! The pre-heating should be done. Time to put in the cake." Anna excitedly exclaimed. The group did just that and waited for the cake to be ready. Anna then softly punched both Kristoff and Sven on the arms. "Hey, seriously, thank you guys for coming today. Really means a lot, couldn't have done it without you."

"No problem Anna." The twins said in unison.

"Still creepy."

"We don't care!" Again, in unison.

Anna sighed. "So, what do you two wanna do while waiting?"

Kristoff and Sven looked at each other, a mischievous smile on both their faces.

 _Well, those looks can't be good_.

~~o~~

Elsa, Andrea, and Christian were sitting around a table, waiting for their milkshakes to be delivered to their table. The couple was chattering away at each other, taking note of all the people wearing little tiaras, the trademark of _Snow Queens_ brand ice cream. Elsa, on the other hand, was hiding her face from the world.

 _At least now I know I can't actually die from embarrassment. If I could, I would totally have died somewhere between that_ darned _store and this ice cream shop._

The blush hadn't yet completely subsided; Elsa could tell. She was still extremely confused why she was so quickly able to imagine Anna wearing every sinful piece of clothing that was on display. Or why she was mostly unable to stop herself from imagining it. Or why it felt like somewhere in the back of her mind, she didn't _want_ to stop imagining. But one more important thought pops up.

 _Why would you even joke about buying your own daughter lingerie. Why?! WHY?!_

Elsa was exhausted. She didn't even notice when one of the waitresses had placed a tiara on her head, probably in response to her gloomy position.

Elsa could clearly tell where Anna got her boundless energy from. Which was strange because she swore Andrea was much less playful when Elsa was little.

But that train of thought could wait as her peppermint milkshake was brought to the table. Which Elsa immediately began to drink, desperate for anything to cool down the incessant heat that refused to leave her face. She didn't even notice Andrea stifling a laugh, or the look of amusement in Christian's face.

About three minutes later, Elsa was finished, satisfied. She started looking around, waiting for Anna's parents to finish their respective milkshakes. She saw a plush store, and her mind started rolling again.

 _Plush? Ooh! Maybe I could-_

Elsa excused herself, and walked in. She scanned for signs of a-

 _Sloth! Aww, it's so cute too. Anna would love it!_

Elsa grabbed it and walked up to the cashier to pay for the sloth. Which cost about $20. As she exited the store, she turned to her right and saw a jewelry store. Which Elsa usually ignored. But something caught her eye. It was a necklace, much like the one she and Anna shared. However, the charm wasn't one that separated. The charm was in the shape of a shiny, purple Crocus. Elsa saw it, and thought it'd be perfect for Anna. So she walked up and asked about it.

"Ah, you have great taste." The clerk said. He looked up at Elsa and continued, "Though, may I recommend something more wintery?"

"Hm, Why so?" Elsa asked, confused.

"Well, it would go great with that tiara on your head."

 _Tiara? What is he- Why is there a tiara on my head?!_

~~o~~

Anna, Kristoff, and Sven passed the time playing various card games. Poker. Blackjack. Cards Against Humanity. Go-fish. When both the cake and ice cream were finished, and after the trio layered them on top of each other, Kristoff challenged Anna to an arm wrestle. Which, despite her petite structure, Anna won. Easily. Over and over again. Kristoff's pride may or may not have been hurt.

After hanging out for a bit, the two twins left, Anna saying she'll probably need their help tomorrow, prompting sighs from the two. A bit later, Anna's parents and Elsa walked in. Anna noticed Elsa seemed a bit nervous, almost embarrassed. When Anna tried to ask, Elsa blushed and looked away, unable to speak, with a giggling Andrea in the background. Concernedly, Anna held onto Elsa's hand, in an attempt to calm her down. Which luckily worked.

After dinner, Anna and Elsa excused themselves to their respective rooms, which seemed rather unusual to Andrea and Christian. They ignored it though. When both girls got into their respective rooms, they both did similar things. They took out their respective writing utensils, as well as paper, and placed them on their desks.

They both looked at their paper and said "Let's do this."

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ **Just thought I'd drop by and say hello and thank all of you for continuing to read this! I'd also like to thank those leaving kind words. Honestly, reading those makes writing much more rewarding.**


	15. Chapter 15: Happy Birthday Elsa!

… **_Yawn_**

Elsa groggily opened one eye and snuck a peek at the clock next to her bed. _7:30 a.m._ She then proceeded to close her eye and turned around in an attempt to get some more sleep.

Elsa had been at the Sol household for just a bit over a week, and everyday had been interesting… to say the least. Not bad. Just interesting. It was definitely a different experience living under the same roof as Anna, as opposed to her usual "next door". That was definitely a good different, seeing a different side to the redhead than she usually got to see. Particularly morning Anna. Most of the time, Anna was like her normal self, just with a bit less energy than she normally does during the day. Other times, she'd be really sleepy and would pay little attention to anything. Once, however, Elsa was introduced to "dead-tired, 'pleease shut off the sun'" morning Anna. Her hair was flying all over the place, which was usual. However, she also glared at everything that made any noise, and immediately went back to sleep. The most amusing part about this was, just like when Anna took her to climb trees, or that time she saw Anna animatedly reading a book about Greek demigods, or that other time Anna tried to ride her bike indoors (and tried to convince Elsa to join her), that it was impossible to predict just what kind of "morning Anna" she would see. Which is why Elsa had a smile on her face. She wondered what kind of "morning Anna" she'd see today. Knowing she'd have at least another hour and a half to herself before learning, Elsa slowly drifted off to sle-

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELSA!" Anna yelled, pouncing onto the bed as she trapped Elsa into a big bear hug.

 _Oh this is different. Or maybe the same Anna as usual? Definitely different from the usual "morning Anna"s though._

Anna was wearing a black winter coat, blue winter jeans, and a pink scarf. The coat and scarf had flower designs on them. Anna's hair was already done in her usual twin braids. She smelled of flowers and sunlight (you know, if sunlight had to be given a smell, it'd definitely be what Anna smelled like right now), indicating she had already taken her shower.

"Thank you" Elsa said sleepily, a lazy smile on her face. "Now time for more sleep"

"Nu-uh! I have the whoooole day planned, and I need you awake so we can get started. Now… like right now."

"No. Sleep" Elsa whined, tucking herself deeper into her blanket. A small pout forming on her lips.

Anna focused on… just about anywhere but those lips. Lord knows she'd never be able to get Elsa up if she took a look at that (evil) pout. "No! We have to get ready right now. We both know how long it'll take to get that mane tamed" Anna insisted. All she received in response was a (admittedly adorable) huff from the blonde. "Fine! You leave me no choice!" And just as quickly as Anna had pounced onto Elsa, she quickly dug her fingers into Elsa's sides, attempting to tickle her out of bed. Which worked. Surprisingly well. Elsa quickly began squirming, laughing and shrieking uncontrollably.

"HA- ANNA PL- HAHAHA-PLEASE STOP. MERCY! PLEASE!" Elsa pleaded, tears in her eyes. "FINE! I'll get up" And with that, Anna immediately stopped, a triumphant smirk on her face. Elsa sat up and glared at Anna.

"I'm so getting you back for that"

"Looking forward to it Els. Now c'mon! Get ready. We're leaving as soon as you're done."

"Leaving?"

"Yup!" We're spending your birthday together. I have it all planned!" Anna said, eyes bright.

Elsa smiled at that admission. It was nice having someone to spend her birthday with. Especially considering she had spent the last two birthdays alone in her dorm, since all of her friends usually went home as she took winter classes. She got out of bed and quickly got ready, curious as to what Anna had in store.

"Alright! Let's go. Breakfast awaits!" Anna happily exclaimed, opening the car door for Elsa before walking to the driver's seat.

~~o~~

Of course Anna didn't actually plan the day solely so she and Elsa could be alone all day (even if somewhere in her mind she wanted to). She wasn't so vain as to assume Elsa wanted to spend the whole day with only her. Anna felt Elsa probably would want to see other people (who unfortunately were not there). So she, of course, planned a party… of sorts at their house. She got into contact with Olaf, Marshall, Rapunzel, and Eugene and asked them to go on Skype at the right time in their appropriate time zone.

She then asked her mom and dad to pick up catering, which mostly consists of soup and roast.

Lastly, she asked Kristoff and Sven to go into her house and set up the TV to a laptop, so that they could Skype everyone on the big screen TV.

A request which led to the situation they were in. Anna's parents had left for catering. Kristoff and Sven were trapped outside. Kristoff sighed, remembering the location of the spare key, as well as the philosophy behind it.

 _This is an emergency key! If you need to get it, it is an emergency. If it's an emergency, you should be willing to climb the tree next to the house!_

Kristoff and Sven just looked up at the tree. Anna promised she'd make it up to the two of them for doing this, and they did know Anna was definitely a girl of her word. The two then looked at each other, then sighed.

"Well bro, guess we're climbing" Kristoff said to Sven. Who responded with a disgruntled sigh. _Oh the things we do for this girl._

~~o~~

Anna took Elsa to the Terrace Diner. The diner is perched on top of a hill, giving its customers a good view of the town as they eat. The waiters were rather eccentric, but Anna felt like it was part of the charm, which is something Elsa agreed on. The waiters, in addition to serving food, occasionally danced for the customers. The most amusing waiter wore a rather large hat.

Anna and Elsa had both ordered giant stacks of chocolate chip waffles with bacon on the side. Anna shoved her food down quickly, while Elsa chose to eat hers slowly and elegantly. Almost regal, if Anna had to admit. Something which, oddly, she found charming. And while some people would be a bit disgusted by Anna's eating habits, Elsa somehow found it endearing. The two quietly enjoyed the view of the town.

"You like the food?"

"Anna, it was delicious. The bacon was crunchy, the waffles were so fluffy, and the chocolate was amazing."

"So Elsa, you still have room for more?"

"Anna, I'm stuffed."

"Well… This might be a little… awkward then."

"… Why?"

"Well, I mean. This place usually has a thing called an 'un-birthday' event, celebrating everyone with a free cookie. However, on actual birthdays…" Anna said, looking towards the kitchen door.

"Anna… what's comi-" Anna cut her off with a loud whistle.

From the kitchen door, several waiters began cart-wheeling towards their table, each waiter singing their own version of the "Happy Birthday" song. Which would usually sound cluttered, almost cacophonic. However, they somehow made it sound pleasantly odd. And the last one to come out was a blonde girl wearing a blue dress, carrying a giant birthday cookie, which looked absolutely appetizing… but…

" _Anna._ I'm full."

"Hey, their birthday thing. We can always just take it home."

When the waiters finished their show, Elsa smiled and gave them a sincere thank you. She asked the girl, whose name was Alice, to pack up the cookie.

"So Elsa, there's one more thing." Anna said.

"There's more?" Elsa asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yup!" Anna reached into purse and grabbed a small box, wrapped in snowmen wrapping paper and tied up by a light blue ribbon. "Happy Birthday!... number one!" Anna said, a bright smile on her face. Elsa opened it up revealing a beautiful snowflake bracelet.

"Aww Anna. It's beautiful" Elsa said, a smile on her face. "Thank you."

"You're welcome Els! It also kinda doubles as a friendship bracelet." Anna said.

"Hm?" _What could she mean by that?_

Anna, looking at Elsa's confused face, brought up her left arm revealing a bracelet with flowers on it. "It was part of a set!" Anna said happily, a bright smile on her face. Which also brought a smile on Elsa's face. Having more to share together. It seemed perfect.

~~o~~

After the diner, Anna took Elsa to a different place: Delle Town High.

"Anna? We're visiting your high school?"

"Yup! There are teachers I wanted to visit. Ooh. And I heard the cafeteria was renovated a bit. I also wanted to visit the school duckies! They're sooo cute. But I'm mostly going for one other thing."

" 'Other thing'?"

"… It's a surprise" Anna winked. "Aaaand, we're here!" The duo entered the glass double doors and walked through the empty hallways, passing by dozens and dozens of blue lockers. Elsa followed Anna along long hallways until they reached what seemed like the cafeteria. She watched Anna excitedly walk around, noting things that apparently weren't there before. Like the huge wide screen TV. Or the arcade machine on the side. Or th- _Are we sure this is a cafeteria?_ Elsa even noted the adorable little pout on Anna's face, clearly jealous of the people who could take advantage of all of these things.

After Anna had a go at Pac-man a few times ("I got the high score!" Anna exclaimed excitedly), the pair walked to the back of the school to the school pond. When Anna saw little ducklings, she grabbed Elsa and ran towards them.

"Awww! Duckies! Did you guys miss me!" Anna yelled excitedly. According to Anna, when she was in high school, she took care of the ducklings' mother, as well as the ducklings. She introduced Elsa to them, and Elsa watched amusedly as Anna played with the ducks. Elsa knew Anna had always loved ducks, especially since she was a child. Watching Anna play with them so happily brought a smile on her face.

After the ducklings, Anna and Elsa walked back inside and continued to walk through the halls. Anna made a habit to say hi to all the teachers they passed by, animatedly talking to each one. They finally stopped in front of double doors. Anna held the door, gesturing for Elsa to come in. Elsa walked in to see… paintings. Various art works hung around the walls.

"So, this was my art classroom." Anna said, hands behind her back. She looked around at all the works, admiring each and every piece. The look on her face made it look like she was reminiscing. She began to walk around the room, stopping somewhere behind Elsa, who was just admiring the work herself. "Hey Els."

"Yeah"

"Happy Birthday number two" Anna said, holding out a framed picture from the wall. Elsa saw it and gasped. It was Anna's piece "Childhood", which she still had as a lock screen on her phone. It depicted a winter wonderland, with many people playing the snow, though all people were left black and white except for two little girls building a snowman, meant to be Anna and Elsa playing in the snow as children. "I asked the school if I could take this, and they said I could. I remembered how much you liked it, so I thought 'hey, maybe she'd like it as a gift' and so here we are." Elsa stared at the younger girl before wrapping her in a big hug (she was careful to make sure she didn't mess up the piece).

"I love it Anna. Thank you"

~~o~~

The last place on Anna's "Elsa's birthday fun place" list was the mall. As they walked around, Anna noted Elsa was abnormally wary of her surroundings, though she chalked it up to Elsa just being careful.

Elsa, paranoia aside, was curious as to where Anna was taking her. She was just here yesterday, so it would seem a bit weird if she only went there to do shopping. It also didn't seem very Anna-like to just take Elsa shopping. And naturally, she was correct.

Anna took her outside from the back exit. What was waiting for them when they went outside made Elsa grin from ear to ear. Somehow, behind the mall, was a small lake, frozen over in the winter, which was being used as an ice rink. And of course Elsa was always up for ice skating. So, just like back at Aren, Elsa grabbed Anna and proceeded to ice skate, laughing and giggling the entire time, happy that Anna had found this for her.

After two hours, the two went back inside, Elsa tired, yet completely satisfied. Anna guided her to a little café, which had free books you could read while you were there.

"Els, want anything?" Anna asked, planning to get a hot chocolate for herself.

"Hm, Just get me a Frappe Mocha."

"Alrighty." And with that, Anna walked over to the unusually long line, leaving Elsa to read in peace.

Or at least, that's what she wanted. While Anna was gone, Elsa noticed from the corner of her eyes that someone was walking up to her.

"Hello there, beautiful." the man said. Elsa mentally rolled her eyes. Elsa looked at the man without moving her head from reading. He was conventionally handsome, Elsa admitted. _Though the sideburns are a littl- no scratch that. A lot much._ Elsa, however, wasn't interested in what she assumed the man was planning. So she decided to respond in a half-hearted "hi". Which was usually enough to deter those back in Aren U.

"Well, I just saw you sitting here alone and just thought that seemed wrong. Someone as stunning as you shouldn't be sitting alone,"

Or at least it _used_ to be enough. Elsa typically didn't draw much attention back in school. Not that she didn't look attractive. It's more Elsa didn't really try to socialize that much, not to mention she wasn't really interested in dating. Many people tried during Elsa's first year, but she turned them all down, sort of gaining the small reputation of "Ice Queen" within the architecture students. A title that may or may not have been appropriate, at least when it came to relationships. A reputation which Elsa was, quite honestly, grateful for. But she didn't have that reputation here. And apparently, her usual disinterested responses didn't seem to be working right now. This person was awfully persistent, even after Elsa's mentioned that, no she wasn't alone. Yes that seat's taken. That she really didn't need his company. No, she didn't want to grab lunch with him some time. He _seemed_ nice, despite the persistence. However, something about him just gave Elsa bad vibes. It might be something about his eyes. Or something behind the smile. Perhaps something about how he often talked about how "amazing" he was. Whatever it was, Elsa didn't like it, and she really just wanted to be left alone. Or at least hoped that Anna would come back already.

"I'm sorry" the man said. "How rude of me, I never even asked your name. My name is-"

"HANS!"

* * *

After the incredibly long line (which was extremely odd, since usually this place isn't quite so packed), Anna finally managed to get her hot chocolate and Elsa's Frappe Mocha (which Anna found amazing that Elsa would be able to drink considering how cold everything is). As she turned around, she noticed someone was in her seat, talking to the blonde. From what it looked like, the boy was trying to flirt with Elsa. Which was. Well. Anna felt a little bothered by this, oddly enough. A feeling amplified by the fact that she can't _blame_ the guy for flirting with Elsa. Why wouldn't he? Elsa was absolutely gorgeous. Anyone who couldn't see that was absolutely blind. Not to mention she was nice, smart, incredibly talented, caring, patient, fun, an absolutely amazing friend, surprisingly strong. Not to mention how she can be so composed one moment and then so full of child like excitement the next moment whenever she's near things she enjoyed. Anna knew all of this about Elsa. So of course Anna figured Elsa would naturally (and rather unintentionally) draw the attention of some guy.

 _…_ _Then why does this bother me?_

Anna felt odd, watching the scene. Bothered. Confused. A bit irritated. A little angry, if she was being honest. Not at Elsa of course, but towards the person talking to Elsa. All emotions that, for some reason, disappeared when she noted the look of disinterest Elsa gave when she was answering the man's question (Anna swore she could see the girl mentally rolling her eyes)

They quickly came back though.

Anna first took note of Elsa. She could tell that Elsa's demeanor was going from disinterested to uncomfortable with the man's persistence, and so she prepared herself to convene. Then, Anna looked carefully at the man talking to her best friend. Something about him seemed familiar. And not in the good wa- Sideburns.

The man had way too long sideburns.

Suddenly Anna's irritation returned. And not just irritation. Rage. Especially rage. And upon recognizing the man, Anna yelled out.

"HANS!"

"A-Anna?!" (a now revealed) Hans exclaimed, surprised. Elsa widened her eyes and turned towards the sudden outburst from her friend.

"Get away from her!"

"What? Why? I was just trying to get to know this" Hans turned his attention back to Elsa "blonde beauty. What does it matter to you? Or are you just jealous of her?"

Elsa rolled her eyes at the man for what felt like the fiftieth time in the past 20 minutes. She took a look at Anna and noted she was definitely irritated. Her arms tensed up (not her hands though. Otherwise the drinks would spill) She could almost see a slight twitch on Anna's face.

"Jealous?! Hans, if you couldn't tell, she doesn't even look like she wants to be around you! Not to mention, after what you did to me, why would I even _consider_ being jealous. Plus! I would never let anyone I know anywhere near you, if I could help it."

"W-wait, you know her?" Hans asked, visibly worried.

"Yeah. She's my b-"

As Anna was about to introduce her, Elsa quickly ran up to Anna and grabbed Anna's arm, physically feeling Anna loosen her arm at the contact. "C'moon Anna, let's just go" Elsa said in an uncharacteristically cute-sy tone as she nuzzled into Anna's arm. "We have a loooong day ahead of us!" Elsa continued, slowly dragging Anna out of the café, leaving both her and Hans deeply confused.

"Y-yeah" Anna said absent-mindedly, slightly blushing at the affection. When they were far enough from the café, Elsa let go (Anna instantly missing the contact).

"Sorry about that. I just felt that was the only way to get him to stop."

Anna brushed her hair back with the side of her drink. "I-it's okay Els. If anything, I'm sorry for yelling in there." She finally noticed the second drink in her hands. "Oh right, here ya go" Anna reached her hand out, offering the coffee, which Elsa took with a soft "thank you."

"It's okay Anna. Besides, you gave me a way out of there. He was waaay too persistent."

"And weren't his sideburns ridiculous?"

Elsa laughed. "Right? Not to mention he talks about himself way too much."

"Yeah he does. Shoulda punched him in the face again."

"Wait, what? Why?" Elsa turned towards Anna, confused.

"Cause he was clearly bothering you. Needed to be taught another lesson." Elsa laughed at that response.

"Anna, no getting yourself into trouble."

Anna pouted. "Fine. Fine. But I'd totally get in trouble to help you. You're totally worth it."

Elsa smiled at that response. "My hero." She responded, half-teasingly, half-sincerely.

~~o~~

On the way back home, after talking about music, movies, flight, bunnies, and the pros and cons of buying a 5 lb. bar of Hershey's for the two of them (or basically just a pros list because what cons are there when chocolate's involved?), Elsa had chosen to fall asleep. Anna could tell Elsa was asleep from the (unfairly) adorable, barely audible snore. Anna was glad; Elsa needed the rest now (especially since Anna was 100% sure she wouldn't allow Elsa to sleep until it _wasn't_ her birthday anymore). Besides, Anna liked watching Elsa sleep.

…

Ok. Wait, that came out wrong. Anna didn't like watching Elsa sleep in the creepy way. She never actually watched Elsa sleep in her bed before. That'd be completely wrong. And totally stalker-y. Anna just enjoyed seeing how relaxed and at ease Elsa looked when she was asleep. Not to mention how cute she looks asleep. Something that _totally_ applies to everyone. Right? Right. Totally.

… So it was kind of a shame when Anna pulled into her house, because she knew she would have to wake Elsa up. Which felt almost illegal. Wasn't there some sort of unspoken rule about not moving and/or waking up pets when they're asleep?

… Not that Elsa was Anna's pet of course, but if that rule could apply to pets, it sure as heck should be able to apply to the adorableness that was a sleeping Elsa Wolfhart.

…

But Anna couldn't let Elsa just sleep in the car forever (no matter how adorable she looked). And judging by the other car in the garage… or the butt-prints around her family tree, everyone was inside. Anna sighed.

"Psst. Psst. Elsa wake up."

Elsa furrowed her brow, made a small whining noise, and pouted (Anna had to try really hard to suppress an "aww"). "Just five more minutes A- _yawn_ \- Anna." And Anna had to try really hard not to let Elsa have those five minutes. Or those twenty five minutes she knew Elsa would ask for afterwards. So she turned away from Elsa's face (she just can't be stern when looking at that face) and said,

"Elsa, either you get up now, or I carry you out of this car."

"Try it" Elsa said stubbornly. In response to the challenge, Anna got out of the car, walked towards the passenger's seat, unbuckled the seat belt, and princess/bridal carried Elsa out of her seat. "Woah! OKAY I'm up. PUT ME DOWN." Elsa yelled. Her eyes widened while Anna smirked triumphantly.

"Alright! Now let's go in!" Anna said grabbing (a still rather shocked) Elsa. "Also Els? This is your… second to last? Birthday present. From me anyway."

"Hm?" Elsa confusedly sounded.

"You'll see" Anna said, bringing Elsa into the living room. When she walked in, Elsa noticed streamers hanging, the words "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" hanging off of them. On the dining table, there seemed to be a bowl of soup and a plate full of roast. Suddenly, Elsa heard Anna's mom, dad, Kristoff, and Sven yell out the words "Happy Birthday!" from around the room, surprising her. Followed by another round of "Happy Birthday!"s from the television, indicating that those on Skype said it as well. Elsa gratefully thanked everyone and walked up to the TV so she could talk to the gang.

"So Kris, what happened to you two?" Anna asked Kristoff in the background. Kristoff and Sven both had dirt and dust on their face, clothing, and… everywhere. She could also swear there was a twig hanging out of Kristoff's hair.

"You know, the usual that happens when I try to climb that tree. Everything." Kristoff said, chuckling as he scratched the back of his head.

Anna chuckled a bit. "Yeah, sorry about that. Here. For your troubles." Anna passed Kristoff two 50 dollar bills, one for him and one for Sven. "Now if you excuse me, I'mma talk to our friends!" Anna ran towards the couch where Elsa was casually talking to everyone, snacking on some roast beef. She then proceeded to dramatically fall on the couch, back bent on Elsa's thighs. "Hi guys!" Anna said excitedly, as Elsa just looked at her in mock anger before laughing. Kristoff stayed back for a moment with Sven to observe the scene. Anna animatedly talking about… snow or something? Elsa laughing at the faces Anna makes as she speaks, making sure Anna doesn't accidentally knock the plate out of her hand. Olaf and Marshall talked about snowboarding and skiing, something which Anna found to be super cool and was really interested in trying. Elsa laughed nervously at that admission, probably concerned about the possibility of Anna sliding down a hill of ice on nothing but a snowboard. Eugene and Rapunzel were catching up, though Rapunzel seemed extremely irritated at her mom's constant coddling. Which the group could hear. From what seemed to be the downstairs of Rapunzel's house.

"Hey Kris! Sven! Come over here!" Anna said, turning around towards the twins. The group followed, asking them to come over, which they both obliged. Immediately, Anna left to the kitchen, probably to grab something. "Hey Els! Time for the last meal of the day!"

Elsa turned around to see Anna carrying a rather large cake. The cake was covered in whipped cream. On the top, the words "Happy Birthday Elsa!" were clumsily written in light blue frosting. There were two candles placed on top, enumerating 20. "Okay Elsa! Make a wish!" Anna said. Elsa looked at Anna, shook her head, a smile on her face, and blew the candle. With that, Anna immediately began to cut the cake, passing out slices to Elsa, Kristoff, Sven, her mom and dad, and lastly herself (Anna apologized to her friends they couldn't have any. Seeing as they were several hundreds of miles away. And on Skype. Though she promised to make it up to them somehow).

Elsa took a bite and. _Oh my god. This is delicious._ The cake was moist, but still very much cold. And the ice cream tasted amazing. Definitely did not taste like any store-bought ice cream cake. _It tastes homemad-_

"Andrea, Christian. Did you two make this?" Elsa asked, turning towards the couple.

"Nope. From what we could tell, Anna made it while we were at the mall yesterday." Andrea answered.

Elsa then turned her attention to Anna, oddly in complete shock. "What?" Anna asked confused. Elsa looked at the cake. And then back at Anna. And then back at the cake.

"How'd you make the cake without eggs? Wait, are you allowed to use eggs now?" Elsa asked. Anna's eyes instantly widened, a blush creeping on her cheeks.

"Eggs? Why wouldn't she be allowe-" Kristoff began to ask, though he was interrupted.

"Nope! Nope she's not!" Andrea happily added.

"Wait, you're not?!" Sven and Kristoff simultaneously asked

Anna looked away, a bit embarrassed. "Oh wait. You two don't know?" Elsa asked. The twins shook their heads. Elsa smirked. "Well, I do believe it is time to repay you for telling me about Anna's first meeting with you two." Anna turned towards Elsa, shaking her head, silently muttering the word "no". "Well, one day after school-" -Anna's mutterings getting louder- "-apparently she watched some movie about chickens and their chi- AHH!." Anna jumped up at Elsa, covering her mouth with her hand.

"No Elsa! Please not that one!" Anna begged. In response, Elsa licked Anna's hand, eliciting a loud "Ew" from Anna, causing Anna to unhand her.

"Where was I? Oh right chicks!" Elsa happily continued, tone almost teasing. "She talked to me about how the mama hen sits on eggs and eventually a chick comes out. So sh- ACK" This time Anna pinned her down on the couch, making sure she couldn't continue (All six of their friends just staring at them with wide eyes, their shipper brains immediately going into overdrive).

"No!" Anna said before, going after Elsa's weak spot, her sides. Suddenly Elsa started laughing, begging for mercy. She eventually conceded and promised not to say anything. From there, the party continued. Andrea and Christian left the kids alone. The whole gang caught up with each other, talking about life. How everything's going. Anna walked upstairs to her room, walked back down, and gave Elsa everyone's presents, which Elsa decided she'd open in private later, much to everyone's annoyance (and pout, though, luckily for Elsa, Anna's pout was thankfully absent). Eventually, everyone decided to go home (or in this case, log off).

"Thank you Anna. Today was amazing." Elsa said to Anna as they sat on the couch, using each other as pillows.

"No problem Els." Anna said, a smile on her face, reveling in the presence of the birthday girl next to her. When the both of them decided it was time to go to bed, they each gave each other a big hug before going their separate ways to bed.

In her room, Elsa decided to open her presents. From Olaf, Elsa received a small (slightly deformed) snowman phone charm (from what Elsa could tell, it was hand-made). From Marshall, Elsa received a fluffy white beret. Eugene gave Elsa some sort of perfume ( _Smolder-brand?_ ). Rapunzel's present was, oddly, a plush of a chameleon holding a frying pan. It was. Unique. Definitely unique. But Elsa had to admit, it did look cute.

Next, she opened up Andrea's and Christian's present. On the top, a note mentioned that it was technically a present from the whole family. With Anna's help, the family had converted all the old photos they had (with Elsa in it, of course) into digital files and moved them all into a 16 gb USB drive. Elsa was touched at the present. However, there was another box, strictly from Andrea. On the box, there was a note.

 _Hey Elsa!_

 _So I remembered that one time we went to the mall, I saw that this caught your eye! Well kind of caught your eye. It was hard to tell, but I saw it. Anyway! I'm sure it'll fit. I hope you enjoy it (or rather, hope you enjoy seeing it) ;).._

Elsa looked at the box pensively. There was a winking face. That couldn't be good. Elsa opened the bo-

 _NOPE!_ Elsa could **feel** her face flaming. It was a green ensemble from _that_ store. And Elsa wasn't aware she had stared at that longer but. It was probably barely longer. Seeing as she didn't even noticed. _It's not like I_ wanted _to imagine her in this. Nope. Obviously._ Elsa's hands began to subconsciously put this into her luggage. _Nope. Not like I imagined how well it would compliment her fiery hair. Or how it drew attention to certain_ assets _. Or how well it would hug her bo-_

 _…_ _Is it getting hot in here?_ Elsa immediately moved to lower the temperature of her air-conditioner before opening up Anna's present. _Where are these thoughts even coming from?_ Elsa thought, shaking her head. _Last one._ Anna's present was wrapped in white wrapping paper, patterned with snowmen and candy canes. When Elsa managed to open it up, it seemed to be the backside of a frame. From what she could see, the frame seemed to be a metallic light blue. She could even see the sides seemed to have, what appeared to be snowflakes jutting out. _A snowflake frame. How thoughtful._ Elsa thought, noting the amount of frames, as well as her own personal fondness of picture frames. Elsa turned the frame around and saw there was a picture already framed inside it. A picture which almost made Elsa squeak in happiness.

It was from the day they arrived to Anna's house, judging from the clothes the both of them were wearing. They seemed to have fallen asleep on the couch at some point that day, probably from the exhaustion of the flight. It was almost an exact copy of the one back at her dorm. Just all grown up. Inside, there was a little note.

 _Happy 20th birthday Elsa!_

 _Knowing you, you probably opened this up while you were alone. Kinda figured you probably wouldn't be opening up your presents in front of other people. Well, I remember seeing that picture of us, you know, when we were kids, and thought it was just the most adorable thing. But then, that was back then. And here we are now. So I thought "Hey, why not add on another one! You know of right now, so there'd be photographical proof that we're together again!" And so I did just that. Apparently, my mom snuck this pic in when we came back (very sneaky she is), but I saw it and thought it'd be perfect. So happy 20th Elsa! Hope you like this._

 _Love,_

 _Anna Sol._

Elsa read over the letter, happy. She (carefully) put this back in her luggage as well, making sure it would be 100% safe. She then lied down in bed, in an attempt to get some sleep. She was surrounded by the gifts she received (barring those she placed in her luggage). In her hand, the letter. She fell asleep that night with a bright smile on her face.

For the first time in forever, Anna was with her again on her birthday. That fact, combined with all of the effort when to planning this, as well as all her friends coming together in any way they could, led this to be, quite possibly, the best birthday she'd ever had.

* * *

 _ **[12:44:25 AM] Stuck in a Tower: Kristoff, you forgot the mistletoe at their house.**_

 _ **[12:45:11 AM] Reindeers123: Oh. Woops.**_

 _ **A/N: That was much longer than I expected that to be thinking about it. Hope you liked it!**_


	16. Chapter 16:A slightly unusual Christmas

**"** ** _Anna! Get back here!"_**

 ** _"Heck no! I am NOT wearing that again!"*CRASH*_** _Wh-What are they doing awake already?_

 ** _"Anna! It's tradition!"_**

 ** _"Mom! Please no!"_**

Elsa tiredly got out of bed in response to the noise coming from outside. _Well, that's… a different awakening than usual_. When she attempted to scratch the sleep out of her eyes, Elsa noticed a letter was taped ( _… how?_ ) on her hand. The note read:

 _Dear Elsa,_

 _Merry Christmas! Here at the Sol household, we have a little bit of a Christmas tradition. We all wear Christmas sweaters! Yours is at the foot of your bed. Now please, wear it. Or I'll do whatever I see fit to stuff you into it!_

 _-Andrea Sol_

 _P.S. I'm serious._

Elsa decided to "ignore" the sweater when she got ready to go shower. _What's the worst that could happe- oh._ Elsa received her answer when she opened her door. She was greeted with the scene of Anna dashing in front of her room, with Andrea, who was holding a giant white and red fuzzy sweater, chasing after her.

"YOU'LL NEVER GET ME!"

"DARN IT ANNA! GET BACK HERE!"

 _Okay... Let me just… get that sweater._ Elsa thought and walked back into the room.

~~o~~

When Elsa finished showering and putting her clothes on, she walked downstairs. Anna was sitting on the couch, a giant pout on her face and her arms were crossed. From what Elsa could tell, Andrea had managed to force the sweater on Anna.

"Merry Christmas Anna!" Elsa greeted as she walked towards the couch. Anna turned towards Elsa, and her pout transformed into a bright grin as she jumped off the couch and ran towards Elsa.

"Merry Christmas Els!" Anna yelled as she wrapped Elsa in a tight hug. She then dragged Elsa to the couch. "Hot cocoa?" Anna offered, which Elsa accepted. As Elsa sipped on her delicious, chocolate-y drink, Anna took a peek at Elsa's sweater. It was light blue with a giant snowflake in the middle. And was way too big for the blonde. Buuut. "No fair. You get one that looks adorable on you! Mine makes me look like a candy cane." Anna says dramatically, turning away from the blonde in jest.

Elsa rolled her eyes at the comment. Anna's sweater… was indeed the colors of a candy cane. And it was oversized for the girl. But Elsa found the whole thing adorable as well, possibly because of the way Anna was (probably) pouting, arms crossed like a frustrated child. Elsa approached Anna from behind and hugged her. "That's alright Anna! I _like_ candy canes!" Elsa whispered happily into Anna's ears. Which… well… Anna was just happy she was facing away from Elsa, lest she see the blush Anna _knows_ just popped up on her own face.

Eventually the two girls resettled next to each other on the couch and watched several Christmas movies. Like Rudolph. Or Die Hard (at Christian's insistence). Or How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Which reminded Elsa.

"Wait, Anna. Pre-"

"Don't worry about it." Elsa turned to look at Anna in confusion, a gesture Anna noticed from the corner of her eye. She turned to the blonde and gave her a reassuring smile. "We give those at night."

Elsa blinked. _Makes sense… I think?_ "Oh, oka-"

"Okay everyone! Time to go visit my three sisters!" Andrea happily yelled out as she walked down the stairs, interrupting the two girls. Anna grimaced at the declaration, her face paling and one of her hands instinctively cupping her own cheek.

"A-Anna, what's wrong?" Elsa asked, concern in both her voice and eyes. Anna turned to Elsa, and grabbed her hand.

"Y-you'll see. Just don't let go of my hand when we're there. Alright?" Anna requested, with fear in her voice. Which was strange. Very strange. This was Anna. Brave, optimistic, cheery, and altogether fearless (except in regards to certain vegetables) Anna. Whatever's making her this scared must be terrifying, and, seeing as she needed Elsa, Elsa nodded and agreed.

~~o~~

"Ow. Ow. Ow" both Anna and Elsa said as they rubbed snow on their cheeks for relief. Anna's aunts were… very… different than Elsa had expected. They often quarreled with each other, and each seemed to wear only one color of clothing: red, blue and green. Plus, they were _those_ kind of aunts. The ones that can't help but pinch on rounded cheeks. Which, unfortunately applied to both Anna and Elsa. When they finally got back home, Anna and Elsa quickly ran towards the snow and began to rub it over their cheeks, because their cheeks still _burned_ from the repeated pinching.

As Elsa's face began to cool down, she realized. They never visited Kristoff and Sven, who she did indeed have presents for, and she knew Anna had some for them as well. "Hey, Anna. Shouldn't we go visit Kristoff and Sven?"

Anna froze at that suggestion. _Oh god, Elsa. Please don't make me do this_. "U-uh, that might… not be the best idea. We'll give it to them later…"

"Why not now?" Elsa asked confused.

"… His family can be a bit… overwhelming." Anna was twiddling with her braids as she answered.

"More than yours?"

"Much. So much. Like this one time! I went there and the-" Anna stopped herself. _Nope, nope. Too embarrassing. No ramble of mine is ever re-rambling that._

"Anna?" Elsa asked.

"Just… please."

"But Annaaa." Elsa whined. Anna sighed in response.

"Don't say I didn't warn you." Anna said, before telling her parents they'd be visiting Kristoff and Sven. Elsa just stared at Anna in confusion.

 _What could possibly be so bad?_

~~o~~

When they arrived at Kristoff and Sven's house, there were already tons of vehicles surrounding his house.

"Ya sure about this Els?" Anna turned to her friend. Elsa nodded in response, and the two of them grabbed their presents and walked towards the house. As they walked closes, faint, muffled yells could be heard from inside the building. "One more time. Are you sure about this Els?"

At the sound of the yells, Elsa's resolve wavered a bit. But still. She was determined to see what Anna could possibly be worried about at Kristoff's and Sven's place. _What could possibly shake her up as much as her pinch-happy aun-_

"FLINT! YOU GET DOWN FROM THERE! CLINT. NO THROWING THE TOYS. DWAYNE, PLEASE STOP THROWING YOUR FOO- Oh Sven not you too!" Kristoff' yelled as Elsa and Anna opened the door. Kristoff was in the middle of what could only be described as a battleground fit only for the bravest of souls (and five year olds). It took about 30 seconds to notice that Elsa and Anna were there, and about 30 more seconds to realize that _Elsa and Anna were there_. They really shouldn't be-

"GIRLS!" One of the children said, all relatives turned towards the two girls at the door.

"… Elsa, drop the gifts. And run." Anna whispered. Elsa looked at Anna like she was crazy.

"W-what? B-but."

"Kristoff brought girls home!" They all yelled and cheered. Kristoff's eyes widened at this exclamation.

"RUN!" Kristoff yelled. Anna swiftly, and skillfully, dropped both presents onto the porch, grabbed Elsa's arms, and sprinted to the car.

"Anna?" Elsa asked confusedly, as they drove back home.

"Sorry just. Okay lemme explain." Anna said with a sigh. And so she told her the story of how she went there in a previous Christmas. And how everyone reacted the same way. And how they grabbed her and pulled her inside, and began asking the most awkward questions about herself, and telling her the most awkward things about Kristoff (" _We were still dating at the time and yeesh, I really didn't need to know that, and I quote, 'he only likes tinkling in the woods'._ "). And just, it was super embarrassing. "And so, I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

And all Elsa could do was look away. "n-no. I'm sorry for insisting. I should have known you had a good reason." Elsa said in a somber tone. Which worried Anna.

"Elsa…"

"I-it's okay." Elsa stuttered out, ending the conversation, as the two drove back home in silence.

~~o~~

A silence that continued on even after they got back home. A silence that Anna really didn't like, especially since it seemed as if Elsa was really upset. If she had to guess, it had… something to do with going to Kristoff's (which… okay she wouldn't cross out that as a possibility), but she wasn't sure that was enough to bring Elsa down. Whenever Anna asked how she was, or if something was wrong, Elsa would avoid the question, or reply with a non-sincere (because Anna could tell these things) "okay." And then Elsa turned down the divine deliciousness that is chocolate milk.

Which was the last straw.

"Elsa please, tell me what's wrong." Anna pleaded, kneeling towards her friend on the couch.

"It's nothing. It's stupid, you don't need to worry about it" Elsa said, hugging her knees.

Anna noted Elsa's face looked completely neutral. Too neutral really, like she was _trying_ to keep it neutral. "Elsa," Anna started, getting closer, "it's clearly not nothing. And it definitely isn't stupid if it's making you feel bad. So please…"

Silence.

"… place" Elsa mumbled.

"Place?"

"I just… feel a little out of place. Like, you and your family have your own traditions, and just, I know that none of you really meant anything by it, but it just felt weird. And then I made you go to Kristoff's and Sven's even when you _knew_ it probably wasn't a good idea and just. I don't know. See? It's just, I don't know how to word it. I just feel like I'm having a little trouble fitting in. What with you and your family, and Kris and Sven with their… huge family. And then there's even you and your own knowledge of the brothers' family. And then there's just me. Not that I'm saying you and your family haven't been amazing. You all have, and I can tell your mom was trying to include me. And I know I shouldn't feel this way but… I do." Elsa said somberly.

Anna looked at her friend. A little hurt. No, not at Elsa for feeling this way. Not at Elsa for not telling her earlier(okay, just a tad). But mostly because she couldn't tell her friend was feeling this way. And she wasn't sure exactly what to do. She's never been that great at planning or thinking everything through. So she decided to do what felt right. What felt like her.

She hugged Elsa tightly, from behind.

"Better?" Anna asked.

"Better…?" Elsa asked confusedly.

"I'm so sorry Els," Elsa was about to say something, but Anna stopped her. "Nu-uh-uh. Not 'till I'm done. I'm sorry that I didn't notice you felt that way. And I'm sorry you had to feel this way during today, the day when no one should be sad." Again Elsa tried to object but, "Hey! No. Lemme finish." Elsa raised her hands in defeat. "But if you wanted a place, I just want you to know. You have one right here."

"Here?" Elsa asked.

"Yup! Right here. With me" Anna smiled, leaning her head on Elsa's shoulder. "So I repeat. Better?"

Elsa thought about it. Did she feel better? In Anna's embrace? Does she really feel like she's where she's supposed to be right here?

 _Pfft, do I even need to ask?_

Elsa brought a hand up to Anna's face. "Better" Elsa said, sincerely (something Anna could pick up on). Which led to Anna smiling wider.

"Oh!" Anna yelled, before beginning to run to the stairs.

"Wai- Anna, where are you going?!" Elsa asked, perhaps just a tad bit more forcefully than she intended (Maybe. _Just maybe because Anna had let go_. _)_

"Presents!"

"B-but I thought toni-"

"To hell with tonight! It's actually been killing me not giving this to you. Be right back!" Anna yelled as she excitedly sprinted up the stairs. _*_ _ **CRASH***_ "Nothing broke!"

Elsa blinked towards the stairs. Then laughed. She shook her head. At both herself and at Anna's antics. She walked over to her room to also grab Anna's present. When she walked out, Anna was already excitedly bouncing on the couch. The two of them exchanged their presents.

"Together?" Elsa asked. Anna nodded.

"One."

"Two."

"Three!" both girls began to open their presents, Anna opening it frantically and rushedly, while Elsa opened it more systematically, pausing when Anna falls behind so they can actually open it together.

"Awwww!"

Anna excitedly clung onto her sloth plush. She made many incoherent noises, overcome by how adorable her little sloth was; the adorableness of the sloth increasing by maybe ten times more when she heard the sloth make a little noise when she squeezed it. Her "aww"s turned to "squee"s when she saw the stunning flower necklace wrapped around the sloth's neck.

Elsa had a similar reaction when she saw her gift. Because that just happened to be. The absolute most adorable little wolf doll she has ever seen. It was a white wolf with blue eyes. But most importantly. It was fluffy. Like really. Really fluffy. Like, she-could-spend-all-day-hugging-it fluffy. And just like Anna, her reactions escalated when she saw the drawing at the bottom of the box. It was like Anna's piece "Childhood", except the focus was more on the child versions of Anna and Elsa, building snowmen with them now. And it was just.

"Anna, this looks amazing." Elsa said, a face splitting grin plastered on her face.

"I love this, Elsa oh my god." Anna exclaimed. And then she noticed a paper as well. It looked like blueprints to some sort of building, with words typed onto it. Long story short version? _I'll design your building if you want._ "Elsa? What's this?"

" A contract."

"Contract?"

Elsa played with her braid. And proceeded to look at everywhere but Anna, because she was just a bit nervous. "For when you plan to open up your own museum. You deserve everything, and if I could be a part of you reaching your dreams, then I would love to be able to." Anna just tackled Elsa into a hug.

"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you." Elsa smiled as Anna thanked her. Smiled because Anna was happy. Smiled because maybe the Christmas cheer was getting to her.

Smiling because yes, this was her place. With Anna.

"You're welcome Anna." Elsa said, returning the hug. "Thank you as well." And thus the two girls spent the rest of Christmas never leaving each other's side, eventually falling asleep rested on the other as they watched Frosty the Snowman on the television.

* * *

 **Part of a double upload. A/N at the end of the next chapter.**


	17. Chapter 17: A Nog-gy New Years

Part of a double chapter upload. Please check that chapter (Chapter 16) as well.

* * *

(Anna POV)

"Hey Anna! Your mom and I are going out!" Dad yells.

"Yeah yeah, I know" I say, rolling my eyes."Have fun!"

"We plan to. Also. Don't touch the eggnog in the fridge. You know what happened last time."

I feel my face pale. Oh how could I forget? That was possibly the second most embarrassing moment of my life. Really only surpassed by the time Elsa _apparently_ had to change my clothes. Kristoff doesn't even know I've been drunk _three_ times in my life, instead of two. The neighbors even convinced my parents to put me on house arrest for two weeks after what I did.

"D-don't worry dad. I learned my lesson a year ago" I say, looking at the suddenly very interesting snow globe sitting on our living room table. I hear my dad chuckle.

"Heh, don't worry. Anyway, we won't be back 'till like early morning. Gotta celebrate our anniversary while we still can!"

I laugh. "Alright then. Love ya dad! Have fun." I then continue in my best old lady voice voice. "And you better have her back by 3 A.M. young man!"

I can see my dad roll his eyes slightly. "Yes, mother" The door then closes.

"Your parents' anniversary's today?" I hear a soft voice ask. I feel myself smile at the sound.

"Naw, it's tomorrow." I say, looking the stairs where her voice came from. "Their wedding was on New Year's. Right on the dot."

"Wow." Is all Elsa can say to that.

I laugh. "Yeah, when I learned why , I felt the same way. New Year. New life together. A bit corny if you ask me." Elsa walks to the couch where I am and sits right next to me. I take this moment to lean on her ( _Because she's just so soft._ _How can she even be this soft? She's thinner than I am!_ ) and grab her arm. And we stay like this for a while, watching cartoons.

After about two hours, Elsa gets up, much to my dismay. What? She makes such a good pillow.

"I'm gonna go get a drink." Elsa says.

"Alrighty." I say. I continue to stare at the TV, an episode of Fairly Odd Parents playing on it. It is a Christmas episode, which is a bit strange. They usually don't play Christmas episodes after Christmas. At least I don't think they do? It's been awhile. Wait, Christmas… episo- EGGNOG! Oh crap, I forgot to tell Elsa about my dad's eggnog… Eh, I'm sure she'll be fine.

Surely enough, Elsa comes right back in and takes her seat next to me. I reclaim my position resting on her shoulder. I then feel her wrap her arm around me. And oh. We're cuddling. Oh whatever, it feels really nic-

Is she playing with my hair? She rarely does that. Hm, maybe she's just in a cuddly moo-

W-was that a kiss on the top of my head? Okay that's different. Maybe she's just… extra affectionate right now? I'll just keep being happy she can't see my face right now. And that her body's cool. Because I can _feel_ how warm my cheeks are right now. And just, she's not usually this touchy. Which, I'm not against. I'm not gonna say I'm not enjoying this, though I'm not entirely sure why… It's just a bit… unusual? I think? But it feels nice. So I'll ignore i-

"Hey Anna." I hear Elsa _breathe_ out. Which is just. I- what.

"Y-yes Els?" I ask, a clear stutter in my voice.

"You smell nice."

Uhm, what? "Th-thank you?"

"Like. Really. Really nice. And your hair is so soft." I-is her voice getting deeper? O-oh my chocolate chips, is she…?

"Anna" Elsa whined. "I'm hungry."

 _…Okay Anna. Just. Just calm down. Maybe she's just messing with you. Maybe she's like this when she's hungry. Like really hungry. I should probably feed her._

"Okay Els! Lemme just go get the roast out of the fridge." When I begin to walk off the couch towards the fridge, an arm shoots out, stopping me from moving.

"But Anna~~ I don't want roast!" I roll my eyes. _What's gotten into her?_

"… And what do you want Elsa?"

"Something _sweet!"_ There's something… different about her voice. Whatever it is, I think it might be sending chills down my spine. Which isn't… entirely unpleasant. "Like maybe… a _strawberry_." Oh god, her voice just got really low. Her hand's grip is also tightening around my arm. "Or maybe. A _ginger_ …snap." Okay, how did I end up on the couch with Elsa on to- _Why is Elsa on top of me?!_ Oh. Oh god, is. Is she getting closer?!

I can feel warmth pooling in my cheeks at the thought. And at her eyes. Her arctic blue eyes staring deeply into mine, almost as if staring right into my soul. Her beautiful, beautiful eyes, which I could just stare into forev- _No! Snap out of it Anna!_ _She's getting closer!_

And I'm stuck. Wait, how is she holding me down?! How is she even this strong? Oh god she's moving closer. I see her eyes dart downwards for a second as she licks her lips, sending another shiver down my spine. _Oh my god, why is she acting so differently. Does sh- wait. No. There's no way she did._ She was getting closer and closer, her eyes are back staring into mine. And between the intensity in her eyes, her body on top of me, and the ever shortening distance between Elsa and I, I'm a little bit. No a lot. Overwhelmed. I shut my eyes tight. _Did-_

"DID YOU DRINK THE EGGNOG?!" I yell out. A lot more forceful than I intended, but it worked, seeing as it halted her movements.

"E-eggnog?" I hear Elsa ask, an… admittedly cute look of confusion on her face. I take this moment to finally take a good look at her face. And there is a noticeable flush on her cheeks. Her eyes are slightly glazed over. _Yup. She's definitely drunk._ "Yeah, I think I had one cup. Tasted funny though." _Woah. One cup? She might be worse with alcohol than I am! But I can worry about that later. First thing's first!_

I take this momentary confusion to shake Elsa off and run away upstairs. "Anna! Come baaaack!" Elsa yells. I can hear her chasing me from behind. Which is… actually unfair. How can she be drunk _and_ coordinated well enough to run?!

"You'll have to catch me!" I yell. I'm fairly confident I can outrun her in my own house. I mean, she's even drunk!

…

Oh boy, was I wrong when I thought that. It took her five minutes. Only five minutes. And now I'm pinned between her and a wall.

"E-Elsaaaa" I nervously whine. The intensity in her eyes are back. "Heh, you caught me. W-what do you plan on doing?"

Elsa looks at me. Then looks up, and I can see a smirk on her face. I look up and.

Oh. I-is that.

"Is that a mistletoe? Wait. My family doesn't even own one of those! Where did that even come from? Wait Elsa. I-is this what you wanted the whole time?!" I asked, eyes wide. I see Elsa bite her lip ( _Again with the darned shiver down my spine_ ), before whispering.

"So what if it was?" I can feel myself blushing. Again. _Why is this even a thing that happens? It's so annoying._ "I think it's a good thing. You look absolutely adorable when you blush." _And now I'm blushing more. Great. How come Elsa can be drunk_ and _act all flirty and smooth and, I'm going to hate admitting this,_ seductive _? It's just not fair._ "Now, I've never been one to break tradition, as I'm sure you know." She licks her lips.

 _Oh mother of all things sweet and chocolate-y._ "Elsaaa" I whine. I see her smirk, eyes full of mirth.

"Oh Anna. _This_ is for the kindest, most creative and beautiful mind in the world." She presses her _unbelievably, impossibly_ soft lips on my forehead. My breath hitches. "T-This… i…is for the most adorable nose in existence." She says, as she presses a light kiss on my nose. Against all odds, my face somehow warms up even more. I can feel myself breathing more heavily. _Am I enjoying this? She's drunk! I shouldn't be-_ "And t…this is for the mosht cuute and 'dorably round cheekshh ever" Elsa slurs out as she presses a kiss just barely on my cheek. More on the corner of my mouth. A jolt of electricity shoots through my entire body.

 _Oh my god. I am enjoying this. I shouldn't be enjoying this! She's drunk. She doesn't know what she's doin-_ "And mosht importon… importantly." I can see her eyes closing. "This ish for… the mosht amazing shmile in the hist- forever of smiles." And as Elsa draws closer, I shut my eyes. I give up. Fighting is useless. _And if I wasn't completely in denial, I would totally say I'm at least a tiny bit curious how her lips would feel on mine._ And so I brace myself. For the final kiss.

…

That never happened. I open my eyes to see… Elsa is asleep. Her head leaning on my shoulder. I sigh. Whether in disbelief, relief, or… God forbid, disappointment, I don't know. Maybe some weird combination of all three. But hey, I can't just leave her like this alone up here…

Welp, better get to carrying.

~~o~~

(Elsa POV)

 _Ow. My aching head._ I open one eye to see I was sleeping in my room. Which is a little bit strange. Last thing I remember is drinking some weird tasting eggnog from the fridge. Then nothing. I feel like I might have just had the most amazing dream, but all details about whatever it could have been are gone. All I know is, I am much too tired to leave the warmth and coziness of the bed. I hear the door open.

"Elsa? You awake in there?" I hear Anna's voice call. My lips instantly form a smile at the sound.

"Yeah." My voice is hoarse with sleep. "How long was I asleep?"

"Hm, maybe four hours? Here, got you dinner."

"Thanks. Just leave it on the table. I don't feel like moving, and I have the worst headache." I hear her laugh.

"Yeah, I can imagine. Oh by the way. You are never allowed to drink any kind of alcohol. Ever."

 _Wait, what?_ "I'm sorry. What? I'm confused." It's hard to see in the dark, but I think I can see a little bit of a blush on Anna's face.

"Oh, nothing. Nothing. Just, eat your dinner okay?"

I nod. "Thanks for bringing this Anna."

"No problem. What are f-friends for?" Anna asked. I see a small light emanate from her phone as she looks at it. "Oh by the way." I hear Anna walk towards me until her face is right above mine. She quickly moves in and presses a light kiss on my nose.

Which is just a little. Uhm. I can feel blood rush to my face, something I _hope_ the dark can block. I hear Anna mutter something about split personalities as she gets up. I want to ask her what she meant, but I'm currently a little too… incapable of anything really to say anything. As she walks towards the door, I see her turn around.

"Happy New Year's Els." A smile on her face.

And at that moment, I hear the ball drop from the television, indicating the start of the New Year.

* * *

 **A/N: Oh my god! This story hit 50(well 51) followers. This is amazing! *cue little five year old Anna dancing around Elsa's ice magic***

 **This chapter and the last chapter were originally intended to be mixed together into a kind of holidays chapter, but I decided against it. Mainly because they really don't have anything to do with each other, besides both being holidays. Not to mention the narration style of both are completely different.**

 **Anyway, thank you all for following this. And I'm sorry if the last two chapters weren't really the best. I struggled a lot with it, between writer's block and me just wanting to get started on the next chapter. I more or less have an idea of what I want to do (much more than I did with these two coming into it) It will probably be a bit more plot-y then fluff, but then again what's plot in this! I just wanted to say thank you again for all of you following. And all of you reading really. It means a lot!**


	18. Chapter 18 Bye Bye Mama Papa

"Love you mom! Love you dad. See you two at summer!" Anna said as she hugged her parents goodbye in front of the hilariously long TSA line.

"Love you too, hun. You take care alright?" Andrea said, as she returned the hug. Christian, while also hugging his daughter, noticed Elsa was just standing behind them, quietly observing them.

"C'mon Elsa. Join us." He said. Elsa look a bit confused.

"Really?"

"Of course" Andrea added, as the whole family opened a spot for Elsa to join. A spot which was quickly filled.

"Will we be seeing you at summer too?" Christian asked.

"Y-you're okay with that? I mean, I wouldn't want to intrude." Elsa asked, surprised.

"Of course. You're like… a second daughter to us. You're welcome at our place whenever you want." Christian responded.

Elsa softly smiled. "Then sure. How could I say no? Besides, Anna would probably drag me with her against my will if I didn't want to."

"You bet I would!" Anna responded with a toothy grin. With that, the family hug was broken up so that the two girls could join the TSA line.

The Christmas break flew by quickly after New Years. On the day immediately following New Years, Elsa noticed the space between her and Anna was… awkward. Not the usual awkward. More like, "Anna couldn't really look at Elsa's eyes", or "Anna was a lot more jumpy around her", or "even that Anna always looked away from her, the tiniest bit of red on her face, whenever the two would sit next to each other on the couch" awkward. When Elsa confronted Anna about her behavior, Anna's face reddened considerably. Anna explained, or rather tried to explain, what had happened the night prior. Which came out as the most jumbled up ramble Elsa had ever heard come from the strawberry-blonde girl. Which was saying a lot considering the rambles she's heard before. She also noticed Anna's face seemed to get redder and redder as she continued, the talking speed getting faster and even more difficult to follow. Elsa was able to pick up maybe four words: "drunk", "kiss", "eggnog", and "you." Which was all she needed to figure out what happened… and enough to leave her a blushing mess as well, choking out frantic apologies in-between stutters. Something that Anna just happened to find hilarious, effectively breaking the tension between the two. From there, the two girls were able to comfortably go back to the way they were before New Years. Totally and completely at ease with the other's closeness.

* * *

… Which was good considering that's how they'd be spending the next five hours on the plane to Elsa's uncle's and aunt's house. Sitting right next to each other, with very little leg room. The fact that there was little to no space between the two of them _obviously_ not what either of them were thinking about in the back of their mind. Obviously.

Before either of them knew it, the plane had landed. The two of them got their bags as quickly as possible and waited outside for Elsa's aunt and uncle. The two of them passed the time by playing the "banana game" with each other. They did this for about 15 minutes until…

"Elsa?" A voice called out from the left. The voice came from an aged woman, maybe 60 years old, standing outside of a red SUV. Next to her was a portly man, about the same age.

Elsa turned towards the voice. "Good afternoon Aunt Gerda. Uncle Kai," she said, bowing slightly as she greeted the two. Which caused Anna to raise a brow.

 _Bowing? Really Els?_

"Oh welcome Elsa!" Aunt Gerda said before coming over to give her a hug. She took notice of Anna as she got closer. "And who's this Elsa?"

"Oh!" Elsa turned so that Anna was on one side of her and her uncle and aunt were on the other. "Okay. Aunt Gerda, Uncle Kai. This is my friend, Anna Sol. Anna, this is my Aunt Gerda and Uncle Kai. We will be staying over at their house for the remainder of our school's Christmas break."

Anna laughed inwardly. Elsa was being… extremely formal. "Hi! I'm Anna, like she said. Thank you for having me." Anna cheerily said.

"Hello Anna. It's no problem. Any friend of Elsa's is welcome at our place. Now come on, let's go." Kai said. The two girls put their luggage in the back and sat next to each other. When Anna asked about why Elsa was being so formal, Elsa just said something about how she was used to talking to them like that, since her parents usually did most of the talking. As they drove, Kai and Gerda asked the two girls about how school was going, how their break had been, and how their flight was. Anna and Elsa(rather stiffly, Anna noted) answered as well as possible. All the conversation seemed normal until Gerda asked Elsa a question.

"Elsa, are… you sure you want to visit them today?" Gerda asked cautiously. Elsa tensed up slightly at the question, but nodded. Anna noticed both of these and began to worry.

"Elsa, visit who?" Anna asked, furrowing her brow.

Elsa took a moment to think. _Should I tell her now? No, not yet._ "I'll tell you when we get to the house okay?" Anna still looked a little worried but decided it'd be best just to wait, so she let it go for now and decided to sleep for the rest of the ride.

* * *

"Okay. So you two will be sharing this room for the next two nights. Will that be okay?" Gerda asked, gesturing to the room. The room seemed like a big enough guest room. Not really much decoration, but it was spacious enough. The bed was very soft, softer than Anna's own bed actually. "Oh Elsa. We'll be going there in about an hour if that's okay with you?" Gerda said as the two girls were bringing their luggage in. Elsa nodded.

"Oh right, going where Els?" Anna asked. Elsa looked at Anna and looked towards the ground. She also seemed to be holding herself while biting her lip. All signs that Anna knew meant something was off. Before Anna could ask about it, though, Elsa answered her question.

"I'm… going to go visit my parents."

"Oh." Oh indeed.

…

"You don't have to come if you don't wa-"

"Can I go t-"

…

The two girls just stared at each other after accidentally interrupting each other. Anna had her mouth open, but no words came out. Elsa was looking at Anna expectedly, but, again, no words came out. Elsa sighed and shook her head, a small smile on her face.

"Are you sure Anna? I mean, you really don't have to…"

"Of course I don't have to Els. But I want to." Anna said with a smile.

A gesture Elsa returned. "Thank you."

* * *

The red SUV pulled up in front of a white arch. Anna and Elsa got out of the car, with Gerda and Kai opting to stay inside. The two girls walked through the snow towards a gated mausoleum.

Elsa turned towards Anna. Elsa's eyes were glued on the floor, her brows furrowed, and she struggled to find her words. "Uhm. A-Anna. I know you came to see them, but… is it okay if I- Uhm, go there, uh…"

Anna smiled, an understanding look on her face. "You can go in alone. I'll be right outside if you need me alright?" Elsa nodded, a grateful smile on her face. She turned around and opened the gate, walking in alone.

There were two black tombs laid next to each other. There were metal plates bolted onto the floor in front of them. They were covered by snow that had flown in through the window. Elsa slowly walked up to them. She crouched down and dusted the snow off. The two plates read:

Here lies Agnarr Wolfhart.

Husband of Iduna Wolfhart and Father of Elsa Wolfhart.

November 26 1964- October 4 2012

…

Here lies Iduna Wolfhart.

Wife of Agnarr Wolfhart and Mother of Elsa Wolfhart.

March 20 1964 - October 4 2012

Elsa looked at the plates. Read them. Examined them. She looked around and saw flowers, probably left by her aunt and uncle the last time they came to visit. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Hi Mama. Hi Papa."

"How are you two doing? W-wait, that might be a stupid question. I'm doing alright though. I… got straight A's again. Haven't gotten any less." She started drawing shapes into the snow.

"I've made a few close friends in college. My first one was Olaf. I met him in my English Literature class during Freshmen year. He was a bit of a goofball, but he grew on me. And then I met Marshall, his younger brother. But he is like huge, almost a head taller than Olaf. He's a lot more quiet, but he's nice. Very observant. And this year, I made newer friends. Their names are Kristoff and Sven. They're twins, but they don't really look like it. They're both a little strange, but they're really good people when you get past their whole weird twin telepathy thing. And of course there's A-"

Elsa's breath hitched. Elsa bit her lip and looked down. She could feel her eyes beginning to sting, and she was finding it more difficult to breathe steadily. She tried to take another deep breath to calm herself.

"Anna." Elsa smiled a little bit. "I met Anna again. She's going to Aren University. And she's living next door again. Isn't that just amazing? She's changed so much, yet not at all. She's grown so much. She's just a bit shorter than I am. Kind of like before. She's still the fun loving, overactive, clumsy, awkward girl we all knew and loved. She's even somehow gotten kinder. She's majoring in art and wants to be in charge of her own art gallery. And her drawings are really, really good. She's also gotten really strong. Like when I met her, we bumped into each other. Literally! I wound up on the floor, and she was on top of me. And it was just, she was extremely nervous. Didn't even recognize me. But she was so nice, I was honestly taken aback. She's grown so much, yet she's the lovable goofball I've always known and loved. I just wis-" Elsa grit her teeth. She could feel pain spreading from her chest. Pain that was coming in waves, in sync with her heartbeat. She was finding it more and more difficult to choke back the tears, which just kept threatening to come out with every wave. She takes one more shaky breath to keep herself together.

"I really wish you two could have met her. Y-you would have loved her all over again. And I'm really sure she wishes she could have gotten to see you two one more time.

…

I really wish I could have gotten to see you one more time." And it was all too much. Elsa shook as tears started to roll from her eyes. Her shoulders began to shake as her breath grew uneven. Her hands were balled into fists as she tried to get a hold of herself, as she tried to get out the rest of what she had wanted to say.

"I'm so, so sorry I didn't come earlier. That I didn't call m-more often. It's just, I was so busy with school and everything, I just. Couldn't find time. I miss you two so much. Every day, I look at that picture you guys packed for me. The one from graduation, and just. I miss you two every time I see it. I miss you two so much." Elsa changed her position so she was kneeling. "I'm so. So sorry for not coming sooner. I know I should have. I w-was just so bu..s… no, no that's not right. I just, I was scared. Not because I felt like I shouldn't visit here. None of that. I just, didn't want to see this. Like confirmation that you guys were really d-dead. Like-" Elsa was finding it more difficult to talk, her voice getting more hoarse and strained- "maybe. Just maybe. I could lie to myself thinking you guys were still here. Still alive. But I can't. But you're not.

I just hope that, wherever you two are, you're happy. And that you two knew. Know. That I love you two, so much." Elsa got up and slowly walked towards the exit. As she was about to leave, she turned around. Leaning on the wall next to her she said, "Bye bye. Mama. Papa."

And something about this farewell, whether it be the confirmation or the finality of it, finally broke the control Elsa had over herself, and all the tears she was holding back started to fall. She hugged herself as she walked outside. When she was outside, she saw Anna standing in the snow, a soft smile on her face. At the sight of Elsa, Anna slowly opened her arms, inviting Elsa to hug her. To use her shoulder to cry on. An invitation Elsa accepted. The two of them walked back to the car, their arms on the other's neck, supporting each other.

When they got to the car, Gerda and Kai asked if everything was alright. To which Elsa nodded, and just asked if they could go home and rest. The two of them smiled understandingly and drove them home, with Elsa leaning into Anna as she continued to cry quietly as Anna rubbed comforting circles on her back. When they all got back to the house, it was mostly quiet. Anna and Elsa sat on the couch, also in silence. Not an uncomfortable silence really. It was more of an "I'm not sure what to say, but I'm here for you" kind of silence, with Anna still holding Elsa, her tears mostly gone. An action that continued until the two girls eventually went to sleep.

* * *

Elsa woke up to the sound of snoring. It took her a moment to realize that she couldn't move. It took her another moment to notice that Anna was still holding her, as she had been the entire night. A gesture that made Elsa smile.

 _This girl is just too kind._ She looked up to see Anna still adorably asleep. She nearly began to laugh when she saw Anna's mane of hair sticking out in a giant puffball, while silently hoping hers wasn't the same. She pressed a soft kiss on Anna's nose while whispering a soft "thank you" before cuddling back into Anna's embrace. Elsa quickly fell back asleep. Quick enough to not notice the snoring had stopped. And definitely quick enough to miss both the slight blush and goofy smile that formed on Anna's face.

* * *

 _ **A/N: I hope that was okay ^^". Totally not used to doing anything sort of sad, so I hope it went alright.**_


	19. Chapter 19: Feb 14 and Chocolate

When Rapunzel walked into her dorm room, she was surprised to see that all the lights were off... save for the ones coming out from the kitchen. Since Anna usually spends nights at Elsa's, the lack of light would be normal, but Anna told Rapunzel she wouldn't be there tonight. It was also strange since it was only around 6 p.m., so Anna wouldn't be sleeping right now. Rapunzel could also hear a lot of noise coming from the kitchen. When she took a look at the kitchen, she was… confused.

"… Anna?"

"Yeah Punzie?"

"What's… all of this?" Rapunzel asked pointing at the… everything on the counters. There seemed to be what appeared to be a juicer, some contraption that seemed to have a cylindrical container on the top with what looked like a pot right next to it, what seemed to be a meat thermometer, and a doohickey that looked like a metallic cube with a half-spherical depression and a metal bar on top. All of that, and Anna was in an apron.

"Oh, just things. Making stuff for tomorrow." Anna said nonchalantly. Rapunzel noted tomorrow was Valentine's day.

"Ooh, gonna make something for a special someone?" Rapunzel asked, a cat-like grin forming on her face.

"Sure" Anna said distractedly, more focused on making sure she had everything. Rapunzel was taken aback. She was expecting a more… animated reaction.

And then the room was quiet. Very quiet. The only noise in the room came from Anna gathering everything she needed from pantries Rapunzel didn't even know they had.

…

"So uh, can I have one when you're do-"

"Maybe." Anna replied quickly. Rapunzel just blinked. Her friend was being a lot less… talkative than usual. She walked into the bedroom to avoid the awkward silence, and logged onto Skype to report this to the group.

 **Stuck in a tower:** **So. Anna seems to be making chocolate.**

 **Wishing for Summer: Ooh! Maybe she's making them for you-know-who! ;D**

 **Marshmallow: Probably, can't think of anyone else.**

 **Smolder: Yeah, and from what princess tells me, red doesn't seem to have anyone else she could give them too.**

 **Stuck in a tower: Aww, you called me princess.**

 **Smolder: ;) You know it.**

 **Wishing for Summer: Eww, you two get a room.**

 **Stuck in a tower: We already do ;D!**

 **Reindeers123: Wait. Wait, Punz.**

 **Stuck in a tower: Yeah?**

 **Reindeers123: She's… she's making chocolate.**

 **Stuck in a tower: Yeah, probly for Elsa.**

 **Reindeers123: Yeah, that's not important. I need you. To steal me and Sven some.**

 **Stuck in a tower: …Why?**

 **Reindeers123: Just do it! D:**

"… well. I wonder what that's about…" Rapunzel wondered as she started on her homework.

* * *

Christmas break ended about two weeks ago. This semester, Elsa spent a lot more time in the architecture studio. Anna, having a bit of free time, often visited Elsa there to hang around, laugh at cat videos, eat lunch, or do homework. Anna visiting was something Elsa absolutely loved during the day.

Unfortunately, all things seemed to have a downside. And the downside to Anna visiting her every day at her architecture studio was… exactly that. It was at her architecture studio. While, at the time, there seemed to be no downsides to Anna coming over (except maybe just a slightly lower production level, though it wasn't something Elsa couldn't makeup), today the downside became completely clear. It seemed that, as a result of Anna making her laugh, smile, and basically every form of happy expression imaginable, her "Ice Queen" reputation among the architecture students seemed to have melted. Something Elsa probably wouldn't have cared about on any other day. Unfortunately, it _was_ this day.

Valentine's Day. _Usually_ , none of her classmates approached her. This time though? It was much, _much_ different.

"Ugh, why does this day even exist?" Elsa tiredly huffed as she sat down next to an empty seat at the group's usual table.

"Valentine's woes?" Kristoff asked.

"I guess you could say that. I really wish people would just stop asking me to be their Valentin- what's wrong with Rapunzel?" Elsa pointed at Rapunzel, who was leaning face first on the table groaning. "I would think she'd be absolutely in love with today."

"Can it Wolfhart. Really not in the mood." Rapunzel grumpily uttered, much to everyone's surprise.

"Please excuse her guys." Eugene started. "She's just cranky."

"Cranky?" Elsa asked.

"Something about chocolate and coffee." Eugene said. Kristoff's chuckles could be heard in the background. "Apparently, now all coffee tastes like a mix of filth and lettuce to her."

"… Okay then?" Elsa said, an unsure look on her face. "Kristoff, do you know what's going on?"

"Ignore it, you'll find out soon enough. Anyway, what's wrong with your Valentine's day Els?"

"It's not really an issue, I guess. I just wish people would leave me alone." Elsa said before taking a drink of her bottled water.

"Too many people wanting you to be their Valentine huh? Only person I've ever heard that be a problem for." Kristoff looked at Elsa from the corner of his eye. "Well, you and Anna I guess." When Elsa heard Anna's name, she choked on her water.

"- _ **Cough**_ \- Anna's been having the sam- _**cough**_ \- same problem?" Elsa asked, clearly in quite a bit of pain.

"Yeah, been receiving texts about it all day. I'm pretty sure you've been getting them too right?"

"… My phone's dead…" Elsa said, looking down. _So Anna's also getting a lot of attention. I guess that's only natural. She's smart. And kind. And cute. And pretty. And reliable. And fun. Of course she'd be having a lot of people want her to be their Valentine. Good for her. I'm… happy for her. Right? I wonder if anyone caught_ her _interest. It would only be natural, right? ***Crunch***_

"Elsa."

 _They'd probably be really fun._

"Elsa."

 _They'd probably really outgoing and easy to get alo-_

"ELSA" Kristoff yelled.

"What?"

"Your water." Kristoff deadpanned.

 _My wate- Oh my god_. _It's everywhere._ "Sorry. Sorry, just uhm, give me a moment. I can clean this up quickly. I was a little distracted" As Elsa focused on cleaning up the spilled water, all those sitting at the table shared knowing looks at each other. The looks seemed to say "Yup, we know exactly what was distracting you."

As Elsa was finishing cleaning up the water, a burly man with long black hair walked up to their table. He stopped right next to Elsa and took one moment to admire his own muscles. "Ahem!" At the noise, all people on the table turned their attention to him. Well, less "turned their attention" and more "glared daggers at him".

"What do you want Gaston?" Marshall asked, his face betraying any fake interest in the narcissistic man.

"I'm here for… you!" Gaston said with a deep bass voice. He pointed at Elsa, eliciting her signature eyebrow raise. "Today's Valentine's day" which cued Elsa's signature eye roll, "and you're the hottest girl here." Which cued a mental eye roll from everyone at the table. "And since I'm the buffest, most manly guy here," which cued a mental gag from Elsa, "it only makes sense that we go out tonight. So what do you say?"

Elsa sighed and shook her head. "No thanks" she deadpanned. She hoped this would be enough to dissuade him.

It was not. "No thanks? What do you mean 'no thanks'?!" Gaston asked, getting closer and closer to Elsa. "It's just one night. There's no harm in it." Elsa's eyes widened as the brute got closer. "It's not like you have…" Gaston looked around the table menacingly "… anything else planned for tonight." Elsa knew she wanted to- _no_ \- needed to run. She looked at the table and noticed everyone glaring daggers at Gaston. She could tell they were just waiting for the right moment to-

"Ahem." Behind the man was a pigtailed, strawberry-blonde, freckled woman. She was about a foot shorter than the him. She was wearing a green hoodie and jeans. On her face was a smile. A disturbingly bright smile. A smile that sent chills down Kristoff's, Sven's, and Elsa's spines. At the moment, Elsa's not even sure which of the two is scarier. She did know one thing though.

 _I have never been more glad to be this terrified by Anna than right now._

"So. What're you doing to my _best friend_?" Anna asked, a smile still bright on her face, although her voice had none of the sweetness usually associated with her _or_ the smile on her face.

Though… Gaston _was_ a little bit too dull to notice that. "I'm just asking this lady for a date tonight. There's no problem with that right?"

"Of course there's no problem _asking_. Though I'm not sure this _counts_ as asking. So let me just…" And in a second, Anna had successfully pulled - or thrown- Gaston away from Elsa, an action which shocked all present at the table, save for Kristoff and Sven, who both just sat there and shook their heads.. "Better."

"Wh-what do you think you're doing?!" Gaston yelled.

"Protecting my friends. Besides, Elsa's already got plans for the night."

"Really?" Gaston angrily grunted. "And what would those be?"

"We're watching a play!"

"… We are?" Elsa asked. Elsa's earlier fear was replaced with curiosity and confusion.

"Yup! You're… okay with that right?" Anna asked in a much more nervous and timid tone. Much different than the way she'd been speaking to Gaston earlier. Elsa smiled.

"Of course."

And quickly, Gaston snapped and charged at Anna.

And then, just as quickly, he found himself lying on the floor, apparently thrown off his balance and tossed aside by Anna. Immediately afterwards, security arrived to take him away. Elsa, along with everyone, except Kristoff and Sven, again, looked at Anna in shock.

"What?" Anna asked, looking at Elsa. "Told you I knew some martial arts." Anna said with a smile. Elsa laughed.

"Yeah, that you did."

~~o~~

"So. What was up with that?" Anna asked, as she chomped on some fries. Elsa groaned and rested her head on her arms.

"I don't know. People think just because it's February 14th, it'd make sense to approach strangers and ask them out. I don't even understand it; it's been happening to me all day."

Anna laughed, patting Elsa on the back. "You too huh?" Her laugh then changed from her usual amused giggle to a more nervous chuckle. "Ha yeah, sooo… anyone interesting?" A question prompting all others on the table to raise a brow, barring Elsa of course.

Elsa sighed. "Of course not. I'm not _even_ interested right now."

"Hehe, that's good. Anyway, I brought all of you a treat! Happy Valentine's Day everyone!" Anna said cheerfully. She passed out one piece of chocolate to everyone at the table. Everyone offered their thanks. Kristoff, Sven, and Rapunzel greedily scarfed down their piece, surprising everyone else at the table.

"No more?" Rapunzel asked, with wide, pleading eyes.

"Sorry Punzie. No more." Anna said. Rapunzel whined and returned back to her moping. Anna walked away to grab more soda.

Kristoff laughed. "I suggest you guys don't eat those… and that you give them to us."

Olaf, Marshall, Eugene, and Elsa blinked. Olaf was the first to ask what was going through all of their heads. "Why? You three seemed to enjoy it."

Kristoff, Sven, and Rapunzel twitched. Sven began to talk. "Yeah, we did enjoy it. But we enjoyed it a little _too_ much."

"Too much…?" Eugene asked. The three of them nodded.

"Yeah, she's not too great at making… much of anything." Kristoff said, while chuckling.

"But when it comes to chocolate, she is absolutely perfect at it. After you eat it, everything sweet tastes… pretty much sub-par, at least for a couple of weeks. I think that's what happened with Rapunzel and her coffee." Sven continued. Rapunzel sadly nodded in agreement.

"Then why did you eat it now?" Marshall asked.

"We're in too deep. We see them. We eat them." Kristoff answered.

Olaf looked unconvinced. As he put his piece in his mouth, he began to speak. "You guys are just overreact-" His eyes suddenly widened, and he stopped talking. There was an audible swallow. "MARSHALL GIVE ME YOURS PLEASE." Olaf yelled, eyes pleading. Marshall looked at his piece, then his brother. Then back to his piece… then back to his brother. He then looked at Kristoff and Sven eyeing his piece and at Rapunzel trying to take Eugene's piece.

"This… isn't worth the risk. Here you go bro." Marshall gave his piece to Olaf, who gratefully, and ravenously, devoured it. Olaf immediately looked distraught after eating it, staring at his empty palm for any signs of chocolate remaining. There was none.

Elsa just stared at everyone in confusion. She stared at the piece of chocolate in her palm. Everyone who had eaten it was acting out of character. Olaf had never looked so desperate for anything, let alone a piece of chocolate. And Rapunzel was usually the second most cheery person at their table.

 _Is this chocolate really that amazing?_

When Anna walked back, she was confused to see the entire table, bar Elsa, Marshall, and Eugene- who did indeed give Rapunzel his chocolate after some _convincing_ \- acting either uncharacteristically sad or uncharacteristically jumpy. "…What's with all of them?"

"They ate your chocolate." Elsa answered. Anna just stared at Elsa, clearly not making the connection in her head. "Apparently your chocolate tastes so good, it makes the people who eat them go crazy."

Anna laughed. "Oh please, I'm pretty sure that's not true. I didn't even do anything special with them. I bet they're just messing around." Elsa looked back at the chocolate in her palm. "Anyway, so I'm gonna stop by over tonight. Your aunt mailed me your high scho-"

 ** _"Ohhh"_**

…

There was silence at the table. An unbelievably awkward silence. A silence that stemmed from a moan that came out of nowhere. All eyes looked to the source of said moan: Elsa. When Elsa realized what noise just came out of her mouth, she looked at… just about everything that wasn't at their table. Like the soft lights coming from the lights on the ceiling. Or the wooden floor. Or how bright it was outside. She was trying everything she could do to avoid the wide eyes of everyone sitting with her. She was also desperately trying to ignore the burning on her face.

All those around the table began to observe Elsa and Anna for the first time this year. Ignoring the flustered Elsa, because it would have been weird if she _wasn't_ flustered in that situation, Anna was staring at Elsa with unbelievably wide eyes. Her jaw was unhinged and a small blush could be seen on her face. If the situation wasn't so awkward… or tense, the six of them would have burst out in laughter.

Luckily, Anna recovered quickly, and her earlier expression turned into a more teasing one. "Hehe, remind me to make chocolate more often." Anna said with a wink targeted at Elsa.

"DON'T WORRY! WE WILL." Kristoff, Sven, Rapunzel, and Olaf yelled, causing everyone around the table to laugh. The whole group went back to eating lunch and random bickering.

As lunch continued, Anna leaned closer to Elsa, close enough that Elsa could _feel_ Anna's breath. "I've got a surprise for you tonight." Anna whispered, which caused Elsa's face to, once again, erupt into a bright red blush.

 _Oh god, Anna's going to be the death of me… and I'm strangely okay with that._

~~o~~

As it turned out, the surprise ended up being that Anna had more chocolate, much to Elsa's bliss and embarrassment, and that Gerda had sent Anna the DVD for her high school's _Wicked_ play. The two of them sat on the couch as they watched the play go on, Anna reacting in amazement at the oddly impressive special effects, Elsa's acting, and, of course, Elsa's singing. And for Elsa, this moment was absolute bliss. Sitting right next to her best friend, watching the play, and eating the most divine chocolates she'd ever eaten. And as the final musical number, _For Good_ , begins, Elsa thought about just how lucky she was that she reunited with Anna. How amazing it is that, even after ten years, the two of them would still be able to be the best of friends. And lastly, how happy being able to spend all this time with Anna made her. When the play finally finished, it was getting pretty late.

"You were amazing Els," Anna said sleepily, pretty much using Elsa as a pillow.

Elsa smiled and hugged Anna closer, intending to use her as a pillow too. "Thank you Anna."

"I'm…re - ** _yawn-_** really glad we can do this." Anna said, nuzzling into her pillow.

"Me too." Elsa said as she drifted off to sleep.


End file.
